La Cañada High School students honor fallen senior

Hundreds of students, teachers and community members gathered outside La Cañada High School Saturday evening to take part in a candlelight vigil honoring a senior who fell to his death at the school the previous day.

Though officials have yet to identify the boy, students said it was Campbell Taylor who fell or jumped from the third-floor walkway of the 700 building, which is primarily used by the middle school grades.

PHOTOS: Memorial at La Cañada High

One student placed a typewriter -- a homage to Campbell’s interest in journalism and his work at The Spartan -- in front of the flowers, candles and bags of candy piled on and around the school’s concrete sign.

As she typed a short message, students began to gather silently in a large circle, each holding candles in clear plastic cups, their bottoms lined with aluminum foil. The message read: “This is for Campbell. Write things about him that you remember.”

La Cañada Unified School District Supt. Wendy Sinette said officials did not plan the vigil.

“The kids did this,” she said.

Above the vigil, an electronic sign flashed a message that all school events, including a planned music show, had been cancelled.

This did not stop members of the school’s choir from putting on an impromptu tribute, who sung two pieces that left many of the assembled in tears.

But for the songs, the vigil was completely silent, broken only by the sounds of cars coming by to drop ever more students and the sounds of sniffling and muffled crying.

After about an hour-and-a-half, the memorial began to break up, with many students returning home beginning at about 7:30 p.m. A few remained far later, however, keeping a silent watch into the night.

[FOR THE RECORD Mar. 4: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Taylor jumped from the roof.]

RELATED: Students share their thoughts following the memorial on Twitter:

-- Dan Evans, Times Community News

Follow Dan Evans on Twitter: @EditorDanEvans