‘It’s an Extraordinary Loss’

CORONA DEL MAR — As traffic investigators tried Monday to learn more about what caused a collision that killed Eastbluff community activist Tracy L. Wolonsky over the weekend, her family and friends looked for ways to honor the dynamic mother of four.

Wolonsky, 35, served on the Eastbluff Homeowners’ Assn. and was working to improve traffic conditions near Jamboree Road and Bison Avenue, where a motorist ran a red light and slammed into her Pontiac Firebird early Saturday morning, according to police and friends.

She was also a singer who performed in local theater productions. She launched a “Reader’s Theater” program at the local elementary school and served on the board of her children’s soccer, swimming and baseball leagues.

Wolonsky also organized the Fourth of July picnic and annual Easter egg hunts in her tight-knit Eastbluff neighborhood.

On Saturday, she was on her way to the UC Irvine stables, where she boarded her horse, when the collision ended her life shortly before 9 a.m.

“Whatever touched Tracy’s life, Tracy became involved in,” Theresa Bombola, 40, said of her friend and neighbor on Monday. “She just grabbed the reins and took charge. It’s an extraordinary loss.”

A memorial service will be held for Wolonsky at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at Mariners Church, 1000 Bison Ave. in Newport Beach.

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Her husband, Karl Wolonsky, an assistant dean of the UCI School of Physical Sciences, is setting up a fine arts fund for children at Abraham Lincoln Elementary School, where Wolonsky started the Reader’s Theater. The family has asked that donations be made to the fund.

According to police, David Pierce, 45, of Irvine ran a red light while traveling south on Jamboree Road and struck Wolonsky as she tried to cross the busy thoroughfare on Bison Avenue, just two blocks from her home.

Investigators are considering whether to file charges against Pierce, who was not injured in the collision, Police Sgt. Neil Harvey said.

Neighbors said the fatal wreck confirmed Wolonsky’s worst fears about traffic safety in the neighborhood.

However, police and city officials said Monday that the homeowners were more concerned about gating the Bison Avenue entrance in order to lessen traffic coming through their neighborhood.

“It is not, as far as I know, a particularly problematic intersection for this kind of a collision,” Harvey said. “There’s a slight hill, but the red light is clearly visible.”

“People speed up to get through that light,” Bombola said. “That seems to be what happened to Tracy.”

Wolonsky, whose children range in age from 18 months to 8 years, participated in the “Young Americans” singing group as a teenager and later performed in USO shows. Most recently, she worked to secure playground equipment for her neighborhood park.

Bombola said family and friends hope to plant a tree in Wolonsky’s honor, or name a bench or the entire park after her.