Joshua Muñoz was mischievous, adventurous, and loved to tell jokes and poke fun at things.
He never backed down from a challenge, his sister Krystal Muñoz said, and one of her favorite memories of him was when “he always wanted to eat off my plate.”
“I always had to give him the first bite of cereal anytime I had a bowl,” Krystal said, reminiscing.
As she spoke about her older brother, Krystal was surrounded by sculptures of half-grown tree stumps lit with candlelight — the only thing illuminating the Youth Grove, a monument honoring and remembering 123 lives.
Joshua’s name was among those tree stumps. He lost his life almost 10 years ago at just 18 years old.
On Wednesday evening at Central Park, the city of Santa Clarita invited residents and families to the annual Evening of Remembrance meant to honor local youth whose lives were cut short by traffic-related incidents.
The ceremony is also meant to bring awareness to the dangers of impaired, reckless and distracted driving.
“Each name here is more than a reminder. They represent a life, a family, a future that should have been,” Capt. Brandon Barclay, of the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station, told the guests. “These tragedies are preventable. We see firsthand the pain these crashes leave behind.”
People of all ages were in attendance, some wearing shirts honoring their loved ones and others holding up signs that read a name and how old they were when they died.
Led by Barclay, the gathering, including local dignitaries, took a walk in silence from the Youth Grove through the soccer and baseball fields to remember their loved ones.
As they returned from the walk, people were met with “Amazing Grace” performed by the SCV Youth Orchestra.
“Each name memorialized here at the Youth Grove represents a life full of promise,” said Mayor Bill Miranda during welcome remarks. “There are sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, friends and neighbors. They were deeply loved and they are deeply missed.”
“There are 123 names commemorated here, 123 too many,” he added.
After Saugus High School student Jared Diaz read his poem, “Gentle Memories,” guests watched a “Forever Young” slideshow honoring each of the 123 lives. The almost 20-minute presentation included victims as young as 6 years old.
Everyone held a candle lighting throughout the video, some raising them when their loved one was displayed.
Parent and Youth Grove committee member Alice Renolds took the podium to share her story, something she’s done on countless occasions to continue to bring awareness of safe driving to as many teens as possible.
She lost her sons Timothy, 18, and Daniel, 15, in a Feb. 17, 2000, crash on Soledad Canyon Road.
“Twenty-five years since both of their deaths, there are pictures everywhere in our home, a vacant bedroom filled with their trophies and ribbons from their many sports,” Renolds said. “Beautiful memories in our hearts that bring smiles, laughs, and yes, lots and lots of tears, too. Because even after 25 years, the pain never goes away.”
She then asked guests to take a moment to look around at the half-grown tree stumps that are “symbolic of our children. Never to grow,” Renolds said. “Our children remain forever young.”
As Hart High School student Jannah Lindley closed the ceremony with a “Know More” vow and the poem, “To Honor You,” Lisa Kaminsky placed a white rose on one of the stumps that read the name of Kiel Kudroff.
She wasn’t the mother of Kudroff or even a relative, but Kaminsky tries her best to attend the ceremony every year to support Renolds and other parents who have lost their children through a car-related tragedy.
“I must have raised my candle probably 11 times,” she said. “Not necessarily knowing the kids themselves, but their parents.”
And as someone who’s seen parents mourn their children “there are no words,” to describe that kind of loss, she said as her eyes welled up with tears.
“When you become a parent, the loss of a child is unimaginable, and devastating,” Kaminsky said. “Parents, talk to your kids, hold them close, and be diligent about making sure if they’re driving incorrectly.”
As the crowd began to slowly disperse, Krystal stood near her brother’s memorial with her mother, sister and aunts.
If Joshua were still here today, she’d want him to know that “I’m still his annoying little sister. I would still give him a hard time, and that I would save him my first bite of cereal,” she said, adding that “even though he’s passed, we’ve done good.”
