Cohen Griggs-Bufton was the front passenger of a ute that veered off Cabbage Tree Road and hit a tree shortly after midnight one week ago, just after midnight on Saturday 7 October.
Cohen was just 16 years old and had just started a Landscaping and Carpentry apprenticeship after attending Narrabeen Sports High.
The 17 year old driver of the vehicle was airlifted to Royal Prince Alfred in a critical but stable condition and four other teenage passengers were taken by paramedics to Royal North Shore, all also in stable conditions. The hospital would release no further information.
Police today confirmed with Manly Observer that the incident is still under investigation.
Speaking with the Manly Observer, Cohen’s older sister Sequoia described her brother ‘Little Co’ as “like a caffeine shot.”
“He was always just a burst of energy,” she said, “He was so young and full of life, so much life to live, so much love to give.”
“He would light up a room without fail, doing something stupid or funny, and really him being himself. He made us all laugh.”
“He would light up a room without fail, doing something stupid or funny, and really him being himself. He made us all laugh.”
Sequoia said her brother was loving his new job as a carpentry apprentice.
“He was loving it. He was excited and just loving the idea that he was getting money,” Sequoia said.
“Dad was originally a bricklayer but none the less a tradie. I know Cohen wanted to be a sparky, but had started there for the moment.”
Despite being a couple of years older, Sequoia and Cohen shared a tight bond as siblings.
They both attended Narrabeen North Public School and spent much of their childhood when they were younger playing soccer together, skating around and surfing near their home in Bilgola Plateau.
“As we’ve grown up, we’ve certainly grown closer.”
Sequoia had recently moved out of home and up to Queensland to work and study.
“Being apart added distance to our relationship, but it meant that seeing each other was so much more heartfelt.”
Just last month, Cohen travelled up with the family to visit Sequoia as she was settling in to her new life.
“Last time I saw him, we were tackling and fighting, in a friendly way, and going back to our childhood roots really.”
“He was loved all around,” his older sister Sequoia told the Manly Observer, “The love and support we’ve gotten really shows that he was one of the community and everyone loved him, from all corners of Northern Beaches. Everyone.”
“I will miss most just having him there, his laugh, his input on anything.”
“I would do anything to see his smile, to hear his laugh, just to see him” she later wrote, remembering him on Instagram.
A GoFundMe, which has been authenticated by Manly Observer, has been set up by friends of thefamily to help them out as they plan for a memorial to properly remember Cohen.
