Madelyn Rai Briggs was 16 years old when she passed away on May 31, 2026. A resident of Ruskin, Florida, she had just wrapped up her sophomore year at Lennard High School, where she was part of the Collegiate Program and ranked 14th in her class.
Her death has left a deep hole in the lives of her family, her school, and the broader Tampa Bay volleyball community that watched her grow up on the court.
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, on September 14, 2009, Madelyn moved through life with a kind of quiet intensity that people around her noticed quickly. She was sharp in the classroom, gifted with her hands, and the sort of person who made those around her feel genuinely cared for.
Rainbow Ribbons Honor a Young Athlete Who Gave Everything to Her Team
Madelyn joined Tampa United Volleyball Academy at age 11 and spent five years with the club, competing most recently on the TUVA 16 Black Team. She was also a two-year varsity volleyball player at Lennard High School.
Those who coached her described a young woman who competed hard, supported her teammates without hesitation, and brought real heart to every practice and game.
When Tampa United announced her passing on social media, they shared that their teams would wear rainbow ribbons at weekend tournaments in her memory.
The tribute came from a suggestion by her mother, who explained that Madelyn was an artist who adored every color of the spectrum and embraced everyone she encountered. A rainbow, her family said, was the most honest symbol of who she was.
The response from the volleyball world was swift. Clubs across Florida posted tributes online, and hundreds of comments poured in from coaches, parents, and players who had crossed paths with Madelyn over the years.
Many said the same thing in different words: that she had a presence you remembered long after the season ended.
Away from the court, Madelyn poured herself into art. She painted, sketched, sculpted, and filled sketchbook after sketchbook with ideas and images that people who loved her now hold onto tightly. She was also a devoted reader who rarely stuck to just one book at a time, always chasing the next story. She loved food, photographed meals she found memorable, and treasured dinners at home with her family above almost anything else.
She is survived by her parents, Matthew Briggs and Colleen Royer Briggs, her sister Charlotte Briggs, her grandparents Raymond and Karen Briggs, and her grandparents Mark and M. Colleen Royer, along with many other family members and friends whose lives she touched in ways large and small.
A visitation will take place on Friday, June 5, 2026, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. at Sun City Center Funeral Home, 1851 Rickenbacker Drive, Sun City Center, Florida.
Families and friends who wish to share memories or photos can do so through the memorial guestbook at Sun City Center Funeral Home, where a keepsake book is being created for the Briggs family.
Madelyn Rai Briggs was sixteen years old. She will not be forgotten.