WILSON COUNTY, N.C. – Friends and family of 11-year-old Joshua Wiggins, who was killed in a tornado last weekend, gathered at his funeral Saturday afternoon to say goodbye.

Those who know Wiggins said that his smile could light up a room.

“Mostly his smile and laughter, and he was fun to be around when he came to visit,” Quentin Wiggins, Joshua’s uncle, said. “That is what we loved so much about him.”

And friends and mentors said they will never forget the impact he made during his life.

“As we say goodbye on this special day, his unforgettable smile will never fade away,” Eva Richardson of Positive Change for Youth said.

Family said Joshua Wiggins wanted to be a scientist when he grew up, and that he looked forward to trying out for the soccer team.

“The tragedy that he endured will be soon forgotten, however the thing we will never forget is the spiritual beauty possessed in an innocent child,” Pastor Dr. Tryone Jones III of Mt. Vernon Baptist Church said.

Joshua Wiggins died one month to the day after his 11th birthday, and he was buried at Oakdale Cemetery in Nashville, N.C.