LITTLETON, Colo. — Homecoming for Chatfield High School featured something unexpected this year — a color that served as a reminder of an an unexpected loss.

“Yellow is Simon’s favorite color,” said Talia Eaton, a Chatfield senior.

Like the color yellow, Simon Katz demanded to be noticed.

“Simon was the most outgoing guy you will ever meet,” Eaton said.

“He had hair and he would always flip it and do the rocker thing,” said Angelina Martin, a Chatfield senior. “He was so good on stage.”

Though the 16-year-old commanded the stage in a band and in theater, on Monday he was just hanging out with friends at the homecoming bonfire when he ate a s’more that contained a peanut butter cup, triggering an allergic reaction.

“We had the s’more and we were just passing it around like normal, take a bite and pass it on,” Eaton said. “He didn’t know that there was peanuts in it. He told us, ‘I’m OK.’ The week before he had had peanuts and then he just threw up and he was OK, so he was like, ‘I don’t want to leave, I don’t want to go home. I’m OK.'”

This time, Simon started feeling worse. Friends took him home. His father rushed him to the hospital, but he went into anaphylactic shock on the way. He died shortly after arriving.

“We didn’t think that anything like that would happen,” Martin said.

Chatfield honored Katz with a moment of silence before the homecoming game, but his memory will last much longer.

“He was so fun and loving and he loved to just have a great time,” Eaton said. “We’re just going to try to be happy for Simon.”

Local bands with Seventh Circle Music Collective are also planning a tribute to Simon.

For more information on the upcoming tribute event, called SimonFest, visit the Facebook page.