AP photo / Seth Wenig
As his mother Nicole Hockley, looks on, Jake Hockley releases a bunch of balloons at the end of a funeral service for his brother Dylan, below, in Bethel, Conn., today.
CRANSTON, R.I. -- He was the boy with "the most mischievous little grin," Dylan Hockley's grandmother, Theresa Moretti, of Cranston, told the Boston Herald. "To know him was to love him."
Dylan Christopher Jack Hockley was one of the 20 first graders killed by a gunman Friday at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.
Born in Winchester, England, on March 8, 2006, Dylan moved with his parents and older brother Jake to Newtown in January 2011.
In a March profile, his mother, Nicole Hockley, told the Newtown Bee weekly paper that her husband, British-born Ian, works for IBM; she described herself as a "professional mother" who was rebuilding a marketing consulting company she had run while in England.
Hockley told the newspaper that the family picked Newtown for the schools and the people. They settled on Yogananda Street, a quiet, wooded residential neighborhood where 20-year-old Adam Lanza also lived. Lanza has been identified as the gunman who killed the 20 children, 6 adults and his mother before taking his own life. The authorities have not commented on a motive.
In a statement, the family said Dylan had thrived at Sandy Hook, the Associated Press reported.
"We do not and shall never regret this choice," the Hockleys said, according to the Associated Press. "Our boys have flourished here, and our family's happiness has been limitless."
Dylan had a beaming smile. He played tag every morning at the bus stop with neighbors, bounced on the trampoline and played computer games. He loved purple, chocolate and seeing the moon. He was learning to read and was proud to show off his new skills to his parents. His brother Jake was his best friend and role model.
"We love you Mister D," the Hockleys wrote in their statement.
Dylan also adored his teacher's aide, Anne Marie Murphy, and would point to her picture on the family fridge every day, the Associated Press wrote. The family said they took great comfort in knowing that when Dylan died, he was wrapped in Murphy's arms. Murphy was one of the six adult victims at the school.
In addition to his parents and brother, Dylan is survived by his maternal grandparents, Henry and Theresa (Gobidas) Moretti of Cranston; paternal grandparents, Thomas and Ivy (Dawn) Hockley of Eastrea, England; uncles Kevin Hockley of Peterborough, England, and Gary Hockley of Chicago.
Contributions in Dylan's memory may be made to the Dylan Hockley Memorial Fund, 34 Charter Ridge Rd, Sandy Hook, CT, 06482.
-- With Associated Press reports
The original version of this item was posted Monday at 8:15 a.m. and updated at 9:43 a.m.