Vigil commemorates a life cut short

VERDUNVILLE — The Verdunville and Centerville communities joined to support the family of Nevis Sterling and to celebrate his life with the Verdunville Strong Stop the Violence candlelight vigil.
The vigil was held Friday in the parking lot at St. Mary Parish Alternative School in Verdunville. Participants were asked to wear black or purple to support victims of crime.
The family reported Sterling missing Oct. 25 after finding his car in Verdunville.
His body was found Oct. 26 in the Intracoastal Canal by tugboat workers in Amelia.
Neither the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office nor the Coroner’s Office has publicly called the case a homicide. They say the investigation continues.
“The community has come out in full force,” said Germaine Bogan-Yarber, close friend of the Sterling family. “We are one big family down here in Verdunville and Centerville.
“Nevis was a gentle soul. He was a sweetheart, never had a bad word for anybody, with a wonderful smile.”
Sterling was characterized as a very artistic person, spiritual and an all-around nice guy.
“It’s a testament what type of person Nevis was to see all these people come out to pay tribute to Nevis,” said Brandan Trahan, a Centerville graduate who also works at the St. Mary Parish Coroner’s Office.
Trahan said Sterling’s death caused him to toss and turn in his sleep at night.
Working at the coroner’s office he is used to seeing people who lived full lives in their 60s and beyond. But Sterling was a young man.
“Nevis was 25 years old,” said Trahan. “His life was just getting started, and we as people can’t help but to ask God why.
“Everybody was put on this earth for a purpose and whether we want to believe it or not Nevis has fulfilled his purpose. God called him home.”
Sterling’s mother was in awe Nevis had so many friends in the area that really came to her aid, Bogan-Yarber said.
Sterling’s mother stood before the crowd and expressed her gratitude for the community and sheriff’s department’s support.
The sheriff’s office has been “phenomenal” throughout the investigation process, said Gwen Sterling, mother of Nevis.
“We do expect that it was some type of foul play. To what extent we don’t know,” Bogan-Yarber said. “But we want answers.”
The last people to see Sterling were three young men, but Bogan-Yarber could not reveal their identity.
“We all love each other and we need to know what happened,” Bogan-Yarber said.
Accusations and speculation were not welcome at the vigil, according to the event host’s post on Facebook.
The family asks anyone with information about Sterling’s death to contact the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office.