On the morning of May 16, Thad Heartfield and Craig Barry will walk across the graduation stage in Laurie Auditorium. Thad Heartfield is the father of Aidan Heartfield, 22, who died on July 4, 2025 in the Guadalupe River flooding. Craig Barry is the father of Braxton Barry, 22, who died on Jan. 10 of a medical emergency. Both fathers will receive their sons’ posthumous degrees, celebrating what would’ve been their graduation.
Aidan Heartfield will receive a bachelor of science in marketing, and Braxton Barry will receive a master’s of science in accounting. Both families will attend the bachelor and master’s of science morning ceremony from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Craig Barry expressed excitement to attend the graduation and honor Braxton’s achievements. Braxton spent his undergraduate years at Trinity, receiving his bachelor of science in accounting, before joining the Trinity master’s program to earn his certified public accountant license. His family could not be more proud, Barry said.
“I’m lost for words that Trinity is honoring him with this degree, and I am excited to go across the stage and get it for him,” Barry said. “It’s something I’m going to keep very close to me forever.”
Trinity awards posthumous degrees to students who die before graduating, provided they have fulfilled specific credit-hour requirements, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Jessica Edonick said. Both Aidan and Braxton were in their final year at Trinity and met the criteria. Edonick hopes the ceremony will allow their families to recognize both students’ time on campus, she said.
“I know the families would want to see their students cross that stage,” Edonick said. “But they’re going to celebrate their achievements in the best way that they can and come together with friends and family to do that in a really moving and meaningful and celebratory way.”
The Trinity community has already gone above and beyond, Barry said. Sending Braxton to Trinity was one of the best decisions their family ever made.
“We’re very thankful to Trinity and the community. He grew up there and became this wonderful person, and I think a lot of it had to do with their actions and the people that he met at Trinity. I think it changed his life,” Barry said. “We’ll never forget everything Trinity has done for us.”
The Heartfields expressed similar appreciation for Trinity in a statement shared with the Trinitonian on July 15, 2025. Aidan spent the best years of his life on Trinity’s campus, they wrote.
“The day of his acceptance letter was the start of the best three years of his life. From the start, he built strong friendships with members of his campus community,” Hannah Grace Heartfield, Aidan’s sister, wrote in the statement.
As both the Heartfields and Barrys prepare to receive their sons’ degrees, Edonick said she hopes Trinity students and staff will continue to support them.
“I hope that the community rallies around them and supports them in this moment of celebration, yet deep loss and grief,” Edonick said.
Barry and Heartfield will each receive their sons’ degrees, along with other bachelor and master’s of science students, at the morning graduation ceremony on May 16 in Laurie Auditorium from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
