17-Yr-Old Star Athlete Killed In Crash, But His 2 Powerful Words Have Inspired Thousands.

In May of 2016, star high school athlete Christian Burns got into the car with three of his classmates. For some unknown reason, the car rolled off the road several times and hit a metal utility pole.

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The driver and two passengers were injured but Christian, age 17, was instantly killed.

JCOnline

Christian’s friends remember him for his sense of humor and kindness, but now Christian is being remembered by people far beyond his West Lafayette community for another thing: his catch phrase.

One winter break I came home from college to find a weight room in place of where a pool table used to be. I rolled my eyes at Christian, jokingly telling him that I was still stronger. He took me up on my challenge and I quickly learned that I had to try my hardest just to beat him in an arm wrestling contest – my two arms against his one. He was no longer my baby brother. Christian’s desire to be bigger and stronger for football, along with the motivation to lift more than his big brothers, sparked the remodel of our basement. Using just masking tape and scissors, Christian carefully made a motivational sign for himself in his new weight room. It read, “One More.” “One More”is much more than a phrase or a weight room motivation. As it was for Christian, “One More,” can be found in any part of your life. The hundreds of you that have a “One More”bracelet should think of Christian and do one more rep. Strive to be like Christian and make one more friend. Think of Christian when you are training for a marathon and need to do one more mile. Do one more math problem before a test. Tell one more joke. Give one more hug. Smile at one more person, who may need it more than you will ever know. Whatever it may be that betters you and those around you, find the goodness and passion within it, and find your way to live your “One More.â€

A post shared by live one more (@liveonemore) on Aug 16, 2016 at 8:28pm PDT

“The ‘one more’ slogan came from a motivational phrase he had made out of masking tape in our basement,” said Christian’s mom, Marti. “It started with doing one more rep to get stronger, one more lap to get faster, that kind of thing.”

WTHR

After Christian’s death, the phrase “one more” became something of a rallying cry. Now, there are “one more” t-shirts and bracelets, and Christian’s words are encouraging people to push harder and be better.

A post shared by live one more (@liveonemore) on Aug 21, 2016 at 3:33pm PDT

One story Marti particularly loves is of a young boy named Hudson, a child Christian used to babysit, and of a time the phrase “one more” pushed him towards success.

“Hudson had homework to practice writing the letter B. He wrote it three times and said he was done. Older brother Simon pointed to his bracelet and said, ‘Remember, Hudson, do one more for Christian.’ We are so proud of Simon for encouraging his brother and grateful for the role model Christian continues to be for our boys.” #liveOneMore

A post shared by live one more (@liveonemore) on Sep 8, 2016 at 10:09am PDT

As she recounts Hudson’s story, Marti smiles through tears, saying it’s exactly what Christian would’ve wanted. He brought out the best in people.

That’s why Christian’s loved ones organized a walk-a-thon to raise money for a Habitat for Humanity home to be constructed in Christian’s honor.

WLFI

The community rallied around Christian’s family and built the home, writing notes to Christian and the future residents on the wood frames and studs… but, as soon as the house was complete, they knew they had to build just one more.

WLFI

“Maybe, three or four, five of [the people who helped built this house] in their lifetime will decide, hey, I’m going to go do that again. I’m going to go build for Habitat again cause I remember when I did that with the Christian one more or I’m going to go do one more thing for a friend of mine because I remember that from Christian,” said Marti . “And then, you know, it goes on forever.”

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