Hundreds of people gathered at a Sandys sports field yesterday to pay tribute to those who died in an air ambulance accident near the East Coast of the US.

Sergio Wayne Lottimore and his mother, Marilyn Lavonne Bean, were two Bermudians aboard the Heartbeat 104 medevac aircraft that went missing near Nantucket, Massachusetts.

Gavin Smith, a cousin of Mr Lottimore and nephew of Ms Bean, encouraged those who gathered at White Hill Field to hold their loved ones tight.

He added: “On behalf of our family, thank you so much for coming out and keeping them in your hearts and minds.

“Give us a shout out and do something nice for someone in their memory.

“Hug someone you love, because you never know if that might be last time.”

Mr Smith was speaking during a sunset prayer vigil organised by the West End Ministerial Alliance.

The vigil was offered as a chance to help those impacted by the tragedy to grieve and comfort one another.

More than 300 people gathered at the field for twilight from as far as St David’s and were joined by several MPs and members of clergy.

Mr Smith described Ms Bean as “the heart of our family” who kept them together.

“She looked out, up and down, for our family,” he said.

“She looked out for the elders and the youngers, and she was a real link, intergenerationally, that will be missed and lost.”

Mr Smith later added it was heart-warming to watch her go from a “young motherhood phase” to a more mature, loving and God-fearing woman.

He said: “We would always be meeting with Jesus Christ, whom she knew personally, so it’s really apt that the pastors came through.”

It is understood that Ms Bean was a patient being taken to hospital by the air ambulance before it went down.

Mr Smith told the crowd that his aunt “probably would have fought somebody to keep Sergio off that plane”.

However, he later added that his cousin “would have fought to be there with his mama”.

Mr Smith said: “Sergio was an incredible young man. He was younger than me, but he was a hero to me.

“He’s someone who was humbly working through life, taking care of his family every way that he could — for big things or small things.

“To know him was to love him and if you knew him then you knew that he was here with purpose.”

Mr Smith told the crowd that he was overseas when he learnt about the incident.

He said he and his family had confidence that Mr Lottimore could have survived.

However, Mr Smith added: “As days went on, it just became this horrible reality.

“I didn’t want my cousin out there in the water fighting to come back to us when he’d served his purpose.

“The man was here for a short time, but he impacted so many lives.”

Members of the air ambulance crew were named by the US Coast Guard as Captain Philip Gregory Childerhose, First Officer Thomas Henry Farquhar, Sarah Jane Paton, a flight nurse, and Jolene Beth Weir, a respiratory therapist. All four were Canadian nationals.

Stephen Jones, a bishop with the Holy United Church of Bermuda, led the vigil and invited speakers to share prayers and words of advice.

He said he was amazed by the amount of people who came from across the island to support the family and each other.

Mr Jones added: “I’m blown away by how we come together when things go wrong and how we can be so supportive for one another.

“The love, the prayers, the kind words — it just blows you away.”

Mr Jones recognised the substantial and “well-felt” impact Mr Lottimore and Ms Bean made on their families.

He said he hoped that reminded the public of “what’s really important”.

Mr Jones explained: “I think we get caught up in stuff that, in the grand scheme of things, doesn’t really matter.

“If we don’t work together, this country is doomed.

“It doesn’t matter who’s at the front or the back or on top or who’s leading — if we don’t support each other, we’re not going to be the country we’re called to be.

“It’s unfortunate that tragedy and pain brings that out, but my prayer is that this moment can give us a chance to reset, focus on what’s important and make those steps towards what’s going to make us better.”

Reverend Howard Dill, of the Bermuda Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, recognised that with the death of all six on board came confusion.

During a group prayer, he asked for comfort for those who needed help and to find purpose in the pain.

Mr Dill said: “We recognise that some good’s going to come out of this. We don’t know what, but some good’s going to come out of this.”

Shirley Place, the clinical director of Turning Point and grief counsellor, offered tips on how to understand and heal from grief.

Ms Place said the grieving process was a long and unpredictable process that could take months or years.

She encouraged grievers to talk about their feelings and be kind to themselves, while also noting that boundaries can be set and decisions can change.

Ms Place reminded those helping others through grief that grievers would need plenty of compassion, support and care.

She asked them to be patient, to not take any outburst personally and to remember to care for themselves.

She added that help did not always require talking or advice, but simply being present, even in silence.

“There’s no clearly defined time limit for grief,” Ms Place acknowledged.

“Our titles, our positions in society and even our thoughts about life and death don’t always prepare us for such profound moments.”

She said: “Living without a loved one is a journey. Eventually, the rawness of the experience softens and coping skills strengthen.

“This family needs us as a community to walk beside them whilst they hurt in tangible ways.”

Photo gallery