Residents Establish Trust Fund to Aid Family Hurt in Car Accident

A group of residents has set up a trust fund for a family seriously injured in a car accident last weekend.

Vicki Schwartz and her children Ryan, 6, and Natalie, 4, remain at Long Beach Memorial Hospital in intensive care, Cypress police said Thursday.

The 45-year-old woman was driving her two children through the intersection of Moody Street and Orange Avenue June 1 when they collided with another vehicle that allegedly ran a red light.

The Schwartz family and the other driver, Steven Arndt, were hospitalized for severe head or internal injuries.

Schwartz and her daughter are listed in serious but stable conditions, investigators said. The boy, however, remains in critical condition.

Arndt, also listed in stable condition, is under medical custody at Western Medical Center-Santa Ana. He has been arrested on suspicion of drug possession and driving under the influence of drugs. A gram of cocaine was allegedly found in his clothing after the arrest, officials said.

Arndt pleaded guilty to drug-related charges in 1990, 1994 and 1995.

Cypress resident Jacqui Bowerman, who has three small children of her own, opened the trust fund Tuesday.

“This is a community effort because we realize what a difficult situation this must be for the family,” said Bowerman, whose children attend Landell Elementary School, the same school where the Schwartz children are enrolled. “This is also a kind of way for us to get over our grief.”

Donations can be made to the Schwartz Family Fund, Union Bank Cypress Branch, 4125 Ball Road, Cypress, CA 90630. Information: (714) 826-0011.