SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Anyone that knew Rick Le Grand, knew that he made his home out on the water.
"He's pretty much one of a kind," said his longtime neighbor Bryn Aman.
But a boat capsized on Apache Lake on Aug. 22 after it was caught in a monsoon storm. Five people were on board at the time. Three of them escaped, but Deanna Peterson and Rick Le Grand weren't so fortunate.
Crews recovered the Peterson's body just two days later, but Le Grand wasn't found until Sept. 2, a week and a half after the incident.
"There weren’t too many human beings that give and care that love the way that Rick did," Aman said.
For Aman and her family, the search has been tough to stomach. She said Le Grand was her neighbor for 15 years in Scottsdale.
"I feel his pain," she said. "I feel for his mom and his family. And the fact that there’s still no closure - it’s hard."
Le Grand's mother shared some of the outpouring of support she's been hearing about her son.
"I’m not just bawling my eyes out because they’ve inspired me so much," said Penny Le Grand. "I just love hearing all these stories."
For Aman, Le Grand was much more than a neighbor. He taught her son to ride a bike and was first to give her daughter a card after a big surgery.
"Always the first at the lemonade stands," she said. "Always the first to support these kids and our family."
And now, they’re all showing their support for his family with a tribute in chalk.
"He made the neighborhood better," Aman said.
The bright colors standing out for a man who made waves everywhere he went.
"I just don’t want him to be forgotten," Aman said.
