Ethan Joseph Statham, 18, of Dover passed away suddenly on October 17, 2023. He was born in Dover, DE on June 20, 2005.
Ethan had many interests, one of which was music. Coming from a family where music is appreciated, he was chosen in elementary school to play the French Horn. It was explained how challenging the journey would be, but how sweet the reward. Ethan accepted that challenge and worked hard to be a contributing member of the band community in Caesar Rodney. During middle school, he enjoyed playing at Postlethwait. He enjoyed his band friends and teachers. As a result, he continued his progress in high school and joined the marching band, where he played mellophone and the Symphonic Band (French Horn). There, he deepened his friendships and commitment to do his very best. One of his proudest musical achievements was a solo in the spring musical “Beauty and the Beast”. He continued his musical journey by becoming a member of the University of Delaware Marching Band. In his short time there, it was obvious he had found a new family of friends. He loved the time he spent with them.
Ethan was an Honors student at Caesar Rodney High School, where he particularly enjoyed courses in Science and Technology. The Technology Student Association (TSA) was a favorite of his (going back to Postlethwait Middle School). Through this, he developed a love of photography, winning both state and national competitions. In his spare time, he also enjoyed photographing nature and wildlife (particularly enjoying Bombay Hook Preserve and Chincoteague Island).
The outdoors played a big part of his life. He enjoyed hiking and camping, so joining Scouts was an easy decision. Ethan remained active in Troop 154, where he developed close friendships and enjoyed the leadership of many caring adult volunteers. Through hard work and perseverance, he became one of the youngest scouts to achieve the Eagle rank. He continued his scouting journey and earned additional badges to become one of the more highly decorated Scouts. This played a role in earning the rare Super Nova Award this past spring. Ethan was proud of his achievements, but humble enough to not want to brag.
He was currently a student at the University of Delaware in Newark, majoring in Mechanical Engineering and played the mellophone for the University of Delaware Marching Band and enjoyed making new friends.
Ethan Statham was a loving, helpful, and caring part of any group he joined. Whether through family, friends, or the community, he never gave a second thought to serving others in any way he could, truly living up to the commitments in the Scouting Oath and Law. Ethan was one of the kindest and most humble people, to a fault, you may ever want to meet--always put others before himself. His strong love of God was reinforced through his participation and time with several churches and their communities. He will be dearly missed.
Ethan is survived by his parents Kimberley and Michael J. Statham; his sister Emma Statham Satterfield and her husband Kyle; his paternal grandfather Flavous Statham and his wife Peggy; his maternal grandfather Ken Correll; and his maternal grandmother Sandra L. Simmons and her husband George; and a much larger extended family. Ethan was preceded in death by his paternal grandmother Elaine Statham.
There will be a visitation from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. Wednesday evening, October 25th at the Pippin Funeral Home, 119 W. Camden Wyoming Avenue, Wyoming, DE 19934. A funeral service will be at 1:00 P.M. Thursday, October 26th at Church of the Holy Cross, 631 S. State Street, Dover, DE 19901. Burial will follow in Sharon Hills Memorial Park, Dover. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to Boy Scout Troop 154 (gofundme.com) or Caesar Rodney Band Boosters (which will be used for a future memorial scholarship fund). Online condolences may be made via www.pippinfuneralhome.com.