Memorial Shrine Grows Overnight For Santa Maria Teens Lost in Fatal Crash
SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) - The entire Santa Maria community is in shock over a car crash that killed five people early Sunday morning, most were local high school students.
A makeshift memorial shrine and fundraisers have grown rapidly in the 48 hours following the tragic incident.
While waiting to hear about 24-year-old Aurelio Calixtro Matias who is in critical condition, community members continue to pay respects to the five who died in Sunday morning's crash.
Balloons, flowers, candles, and messages are scrawled on the closest traffic signal and sidewalk near the intersection of Broadway and Miller.
Santa Maria police took the time needed to make sure all families were fully informed of their loss.
But many in the community were already aware.
“This is a tragic event,” said Santa Maria Police Department’s Lt. Todd Logan. “Our heart goes out to the families and the victims.”
Many of their names are spelled out at the tribute shrine, and those close to the kids have started GoFundMe pages.
17-years-old (GoFundMe.com)
16-years-old (GoFundMe.com)
17-years-old (GoFundMe.com)
16-years-old (via GoFundMe.com)
19-years-old (via GoFundMe.com)
There is a fundraiser for each student who perished in Sunday morning’s tragic accident.
A representative of GoFundMe has verified the legitimacy of all five fundraisers with the GoFundMe Giving Guarantee.
“We're all grieving the loss of these young, young lives,” says director of Fighting Back Santa Maria Valley Edwin Weaver. “Too young to have a loss like this and the impact on all of us.”
While evidence at the scene of the incident implied alcohol may have contributed to the crash, police have not officially ruled it as a cause, investigating any and all possibilities.
“Again, with it being still under investigation, there's nothing definitive I can give you at this time,” said Lt. Logan on Monday.
“It's the lives lost,” says Weaver. “It's the parents. It's the brothers and sisters. It's the cousins. It's the classmates. It's the teachers. It's the police on the scene. So many people who've been impacted by this loss, this tragedy that never had to happen.”
Three of the victims were local high school students, but they were not part of the 2026 graduating class.
“We've been working collaboratively with the school districts, to make the outreach to them so they can have the appropriate staffing available for counseling services throughout their facilities as well,” says Lt. Logan.
Anyone with additional information about the crash is encouraged to contact the Santa Maria Police Department.
The following links will take you to each of their GoFundMe pages:
19-year-old Jennifer Guteirrez,
16-year-old Guendi Beatrice “Wendy” Gamez Escalante,
17-year-old Yusbeli “Ava” Diaz Galvez,
17-year-old Nicolas Munoz-Gautreaux,
and 16-year-old Isabella “Bella” Star Vigil.
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