Several hundred students and their families gathered Saturday night at Fairfield East Elementary School with candles and love to pay tribute to Maxwell King, the Fairfield Freshman School student who died suddenly last week.

King grew up in the neighborhood across the street, his friends said, the vigil taking place in the glow of the East Butler County YWCA, where King collapsed Monday after playing basketball.

“I’ve been crying a lot because I never got to say good-bye to him,” said classmate Mason Ritter, one of the organizers of the vigil. She wore a gold hoodie with a photo of King in purple, the colors of the Los Angeles Lakers, which was King’s favorite basketball team.

“On Monday, he was all happy and everything, and he asked me to go to the Y with him, but I didn’t go,” Ritter said. “I felt this would help people say good-bye.”

Those who knew King said he was a friendly guy, always smiling, always happy and a good friend.

“He was nice to everybody, no matter what people did to him,” said Trevin Lawson.

“He was at the Y almost every day of the week,” said Brooklynn Tanner. “He died doing what he loved.”

Darryl King, Maxwell’s father, spoke briefly at the vigil, offering encouragement to the friends his son left behind.

“He was a special young man who never wanted to out-shine anyone, but he always wanted to do his best,” his father said. “You never know when it’s time to say good-bye. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you all for being a part of his life.”

Ritter said that she and her classmates will continue to honor King by writing down their thoughts about King on strips of paper that they will make into a chain long enough to go completely around the Freshman School. She has also been taking up a collection to give to the King family to help pay funeral expenses.

King, 14, was transported to Cincinnati Childrens Hospital after he collapsed on Monday, and died there Tuesday.

School officials have said the honor roll student had shown no outward sign of health problems.

Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday, followed by the funeral at 7 p.m. at Community Christian Church, 3401 Millikin Road in Fairfield Twp., according to Fairfield City Schools’ Facebook page.