Metairie Family and Classmates Mourn Couple Killed Near LSU After Crash That Shattered Their Storybook Romance and Left a Fire Department in Grief

METAIRIE, LA — Family, friends and classmates gathered Tuesday in Metairie to remember Leah Fonte and Shane Hirstius, a young couple whose relationship began in middle school and grew into a high school romance, engagement and plans for the future. The pair were killed last week when authorities say a drunk driver struck them while they were walking on Nicholson Drive near the Louisiana State University campus in Baton Rouge.

At the Jefferson Performing Arts Center, mourners filled the lobby and spilled toward the entrance as they came to pay their respects. Inside, photos of Fonte and Hirstius covered tables and walls, while Hirstius’s firefighter gear sat on stage above their urns. Those who knew them described two 21-year-olds whose lives were deeply intertwined with family, school, work and community service.

A relationship that began in sixth grade and ended in heartbreak

Those closest to the couple said Fonte and Hirstius had known each other for years before they ever started dating. They met in sixth grade and stayed close friends until high school, when their relationship turned romantic. Last summer, Hirstius proposed in Fonte’s backyard with Morgan Wallen’s “Spin You Around” playing in the background, a moment friends said fit the fairytale image many had of them.

Friends and relatives used words like sweet, genuine and joyful to describe the pair. Alex Gorman, assistant chief at the Third District Volunteer Fire Department in River Ridge, said they seemed to have the kind of love that felt straight out of a storybook. He said their connection and the happiness they shared made the loss feel even harder for everyone who knew them.

Leah Fonte was remembered for her drive and compassion at LSU

Fonte was a senior at LSU, where she studied biological sciences and hoped to build a career in dentistry. Friends said she had a strong academic focus, but she also made time for service and friendship. She had graduated from Kenner Discovery Health Sciences Academy and was remembered by classmates as someone with a big heart and a steady willingness to help others.

Two LSU students, Savannah Samplinski and Abigail Morris, came to Metairie to honor her. They had roomed with Fonte on a recent trip to Panama through LSU’s Global Dental Brigade, a group that provides dental care to underserved communities around the world. Both said she loved the experience and threw herself into it with enthusiasm, reflecting the same passion she brought to school and the people around her.

Shane Hirstius was known for warmth, laughter and a big embrace

Hirstius worked as a firefighter under Gorman at the Third District department, and colleagues remembered him as someone who made people feel welcome almost immediately. At 6 feet 4 inches, he was described as a huge hugger rather than a handshake guy, a personality trait that matched the easygoing way he treated teammates, friends and strangers. Those memories were repeated often Tuesday as people tried to make sense of the loss.

Cade Kropp, 21, said he played baseball and travel ball with Hirstius through the Jefferson Parish Recreation Department. He remembered that on the first day of tryouts, Hirstius was already on the team and went out of his way to make him feel included. Others said that kind of openness defined him, because he seemed to want anyone he met to feel like part of his family.

A visitation filled the theater with photos, flowers and memories

The visitation drew a steady stream of mourners who moved past flower arrangements and photo collages showing Fonte and Hirstius as babies, children and teenagers. Their smiling faces appeared throughout the venue, creating a visual timeline of the lives that had been cut short. The crowd reflected the reach of their relationships across Metairie, LSU and the fire department.

Inside the theater, the arrangement on stage underscored the scale of the loss. Hirstius’s firefighter gear was placed above the couple’s urns, flanked by large framed photographs. The setting gave friends and relatives a focal point for grief, while also serving as a reminder of the identities they carried in life: student, firefighter, teammate, daughter, son, friend and partner.

Loved ones say the couple left a lasting example behind

Brittany Hirstius, Shane’s sister, said her brother was kind, joyful and deeply loving. She said he was not only affectionate, but also eager to make people feel connected to him. To her, that spirit showed up early in life, when he would cling to her as a younger child out of love rather than annoyance.

She said she had looked forward to becoming more like friends with him as they grew older, and that his death felt like something precious had been taken away. Gorman and others echoed that sense of loss, saying both Fonte and Hirstius were the kind of people who made others better simply by being themselves. Their families and classmates now remember them not only for what happened to them, but for the lives they lived before it.