Family, friends and members of the community said their final goodbyes Friday to a young couple destined for marriage and are now laid to rest together.
Authorities say the deaths of Evan Fiore and Kiley Armstrong were the result of a speeding, unlicensed teenage driver crashing into their car two weeks ago at the intersection of Routes 37 and 166 in Toms River.
A pair of hearses carried Fiore and Armstrong to Saint Joseph Church, just blocks away from where their lives ended on March 7.
As mourners arrived before the funeral Mass, a Silverton fire truck could be seen outside, another sign of the community coming together in grief.
The pair was destined to be together, according to their obituaries.
They dated for four and a half years and were both graduates of Toms River North's Class of 2021.
The 23- and 21-year-old couple would have graduated from their respective colleges in just weeks – Armstrong from Rowan University, and Fiore, from Ocean County College.
Armstrong's twin sister, Krista, and her boyfriend, Ryan Chapman, were both badly hurt in the crash while riding in the back seat of the struck Toyota Camry.
A GoFundMe page set up by the families has already raised more than $210,000, with an update stating Krista Armstrong and Chapman are both out of the hospital and recovering.
As the Toms River community mourns the loss, the investigation into the crash remains in the hands of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office.
The teen behind the wheel of the BMW who hit them has not been identified due to juvenile justice laws.