'Life is precious'

There are eight of them.

Two on the top shelf. Four in the middle. Two more on the bottom shelf.

A smiling portrait graces each plaque in Room 14. The names of each subject -- Ryan Aucutt, Leah Mack, Brent Edwards, Devin Weaver, Bill Anderson, Christopher Schaub, David McDonald, Ryan Leitch -- are inscribed under their photographs, along with the date they were born and the date they died.

"Anytime anybody comes in, they'll be reminded," said youth director Lori Emard.

The new Memorial Wall at Yakima's Holy Family Parish commemorates the young people -- teens and twenty-somethings -- who participated in youth groups or sat on the parish youth council, volunteered or were baptized and confirmed and received First Communion here, or helped out as altar servers during Mass.

And died young.

A candlelight prayer service on a recent Wednesday night marked the completion of the memorial, a tribute to the deceased and a reminder, according to the Rev. Mike Ibach, that "life is precious."

The parish administrator and judicial vicar of the Catholic Diocese of Yakima, Ibach had been working on the project for about five months with Emard and Rose Meyer, the coordinator for parish programs for preschool children to eighth-graders. He led the service, which was attended by students and youth group leaders as well as the families of the young people immortalized on the memorial wall.

"Each one of them had a life. Each one of them was unique and special," Ibach said. "In remembering them, we're hoping we can also make the best of our lives."

More than 130 people crowded into the former classroom, now a meeting place for middle and high school students, to pay their respects to young people who were active in the parish and have died since the early 1990s.

"I think the families need to know we love their children and these kids are part of this (parish) and their names need to be remembered," Meyer said.

As each of their names were read outloud, family members extinguished a flame, burning in honor of the deceased.

"We don't want to forget what they were," youth leader Manuel Pedrosa said during the service. "They were bright lights in their families and among their friends."

The candles were to remind those attending "we are to light up the world and make it a better place while we're here," Ibach said. "We never know when we will come to the hour of our own deaths."

The memorial -- a wood and glass display case, made by a church member -- contains a framed invitation to the Nov. 12 service. It stands on the top shelf between portraits of Ryan Aucutt and Leah Mack.

"I think it is very nice," said Shirley Aucutt, whose son died nearly 15 years ago. "It was a long time coming.

"It brings to the forefront that these things do happen to young people," she said. "Just because you're young doesn't mean your life is going to go on. It could stop right now."

A picture of Devin Weaver sits on the middle shelf. The 21-year-old U.S. Forest Service firefighter was trapped, along with three other young firefighters, in the Thirtymile Fire near Winthrop seven years ago.

"It's something you live with every day, and it's good for the community to see that this happens and what a tragedy it is," said his mother, Barbara Weaver. "It's not a club you want to be part of, but it's nice to know that people care."

Rosemary Anderson agreed. "I had no idea what to expect, and it was kind of overwhelming, but it was really nice," said the mother of the late Bill Anderson. He was 26 when he was accidentally electrocuted on a construction job site six years ago in December.

"It's kind of like a big hole in your heart," his mom said, describing what it's like to lose a child. "It's hard to put in words. You just think about him and be thankful he was in your life."

Vicki and Tom Schaub, parents of the late Chris Schaub, lost their son to cancer four years ago, just five hours shy of marking his 18th birthday.

"It's just very touching that they dedicated this to Chris and all the rest of the kids that passed away in this church," his mom said after the service. "It's so important to remember all of them."

Like Bill Anderson, Chris Schaub had been confirmed at Holy Family and received his First Communion here, served as an altar boy and was a member of youth groups.

"There hasn't been a day I haven't thought about him," his dad said. "He was a real amazing kid."

Zuly Diosdada, a 16-year-old junior at Eisenhower High School, didn't know of any of the young people recognized on the Memorial Wall. But she said Pedrosa's words really resonated with her.

"He said we should keep our fire burning bright and not take anything for granted," she said. "It made me think of life in a different perspective."

There's room for more portraits in the case. But, Tom Schaub said, "You don't want to fill that up."

• The Classified Marketplace
• • Announcements
  • Public Notices
  • Legal Notices
  • Merchandise
  • Yard Sales
  • Animals
  • Finance

• Newspaper Ads
  View All