For the past week, Chris Cole and Mike Koharian have been scrubbing floors and moving furniture, preparing to commemorate the life of a friend they lost this summer the way he would have wanted – with a party.

Eric Frederick, who was killed in a car accident in July, would have celebrated his 20th birthday Dec. 14. On Friday, his friends will celebrate his life in a benefit concert at The Stadium on Congress Street in Portland – something they’ve been planning since they heard the news of his death.

“We had to do it,” said Cole, 20, of Portland.

Cole and Koharian, 19, grew up in Portland with Frederick, who moved to Scarborough in seventh grade. Though the friends didn’t stay as close to Frederick after he moved, he was someone that they were always trying to reconnect with.

“He’s one of those people that makes such an impact on your life, you can’t forget it,” Cole said.

Frederick died July 11 at Maine Medical Center after suffering severe head injuries in a single-car accident July 10 in Buxton.

The driver, Jesse Gay, 23, of Old Orchard Beach, lost control of a car that was traveling southeast on Simpson Road at about 6 p.m. According to a police report, the car struck several trees, crossed the road and landed in a ditch.

Frederick was a 2006 graduate of Scarborough High School and worked at the Clambake Restaurant in Pine Point. At his funeral, Frederick was remembered for his likable, upbeat nature and his ability to make new friends. Among his old classmates in Portland, the friends he made in Scarborough and others he met along the way, Cole said he expects the concert to draw at least 300 people.

Cole remembers the last time he saw Frederick. It was at a concert with the band Cambiata – one of the five bands that will be playing Friday in the show, called Fred-Rock, which will benefit the New England Organ Bank.

Tickets cost $8 before the show and $10 at the door. Money will also be raised through raffles and concert T-shirt sales. Cole said the charity of choice was a suggestion from Frederick’s mother, Deb Coons, who told them how well the organization treated her and her family when they decided to donate Frederick’s organs.

Koharian said the bands represent a wide range of genres, from acoustic rock to hip hop, which reflect Frederick’s own varied musical taste. The other bands playing are Theives and Villains, Everysmithever, Dean Ford and the Goodnight Process and Doc Rizk and Will da Beast.

Originally, they had planned to hold the show at Riverton Elementary School in Portland, where Frederick and Cole met as children, but with help from Frederick’s uncle, Mike Willett, who is friends with the owner of The Stadium, they were able to secure the downstairs stage at the Portland venue, which hasn’t held a concert since being vandalized a couple years ago.

Though the venue was donated for the show, there was a catch for Cole and Koharian – they had to clean it up.

“This place was a mess,” said Cole.

He and Koharian have been vaccuuming floors and picking up trash for the past week. Koharian said he’s had to take time from his regular job in order to get the venue ready.

“As much time and effort as we put into it, it will be worth it,” Cole said.

Part of the cleanup has been getting rid of signs that promote alcohol brands. Though Red Bull will be in abundance, Cole and Koharian are adamant about keeping the event chemical-free.

Along with the bands, Cole said, they will be welcoming friends and family members on stage to share stories and memories of Frederick – but they insist on keeping it upbeat.

“People have done enough mourning,” Cole said. “We want everybody to know this is a celebration.”

The friends agreed that if Frederick knew people were crying over his death, he’d been doing everything in his power to make them smile and laugh.

Koharian said he hopes the concert can help those who are still grieving transition into a new stage of remembering Frederick.

“It’s better to see someone go out in glory than fade away,” Koharian said. “He was at the top of his game.”

But this concert is just the beginning for Koharian and Cole. They plan on holding the event again in the summer and then twice a year indefinitely, because they know people will keep coming out. Despite his early death, Frederick had made more friends and created more memories than most who live four times as long as he did, according to his friends.

“He went out like James Dean,” said Koharian.

“I don’t think there’s one person who knew Freddy who can say he didn’t live a full life,” said Cole.

‘Freddy’ remembered for smile, spirit Fred-Rock – a fundraiser celebrates memory of popular Scarborough man(100-6065)Eric Frederick, who was killed in a car accident in July, would have celebrated his 20th birthday Dec. 14. On Friday, his friends will celebrate his life in a benefit concert at The Stadium in Portland.

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