Norfolk, Va. - A friend of the pilot killed when his plane crashed into a wooded area of Norfolk Botanical Garden on Wednesday morning is sharing pictures and memories of his friend.
Sean Devlin received texts from his good friend and pilot, Dr. Michael Buxton, right up until the very end.
His final message: "Oh winds that rush my tail to thee,” Devlin reads. “That was his last quote that he sent me.”
Buxton also shared several pictures with Devlin, taken inside the Mooney M-20F plane he was flying from Florida to Virginia.
"He just loved being in the air,” Devlin says. “He loved flying. He loved enjoying life and grasping every bit of it.”
Just hours later, Devlin got the news.
Early yesterday morning, Buxton crashed into the dark, foggy, Enchanted Forest inside the Norfolk Botanical Garden.
His two childhood friends from New York were also on board. All three died.
"We talked about living blessed lives and story book lives sometimes and for him to draw his last breath in the Enchanted Forest was kind of something like wow," Devlin says.
It was a story book life that ended in tragedy.
“His abilities were unbelievable,” Devlin says. “There was nothing I saw him do that he didn`t master.”
Devlin says Buxton’s life was anything but typical. He chased fun and adventure --
“Skiing, water skiing, diving," Devlin says.
Was a loving father and also active in local politics. But most importantly, Devlin says Buxton possessed a fierce passion for helping others.
As a clinical psychologist in Virginia Beach, Devlin says Dr. Buxton thought of his patients as family and worked tirelessly for every single one.
“I feel very sorry for his patients,” he says. “I really don’t know how some of them are going to get through.”
Devlin says his life is better because of Buxton’s, but it's the sting of knowing it’s over that hurts the most.
“I don’t really mourn his life I mourn the loss of him and not being able to spend time with him,” he says. “It’s kind of sad to me that I didn’t spend enough time with him.”
One of the last photos taken of Michael Buxton, pilot in plane that crashed in Norfolk this morning @WTKR3 http://t.co/z3XmlIxE8S—
Marissa Jasek WTKR (@MarissaJasek) March 04, 2015
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