Memorial Backed for Kali Manley, Slain Nordhoff Student

Hoping to keep the memory of slain freshman Kali Manley alive, students at Nordhoff High School are launching a fund-raising drive to pay for construction of a campus memorial.

An Oak View resident, Kali, 14, disappeared Dec. 20 after climbing into a truck with two men she barely knew during a sleepover at a friend’s house, authorities said.

David Alvarez, 22, of Ojai, led authorities to Kali’s strangled body a week later in the mountains nearby. Alvarez has since been charged with murder and attempted rape.

“We decided to do this right after it happened,” freshman Anna Masters said of the memorial. “We knew we had to do something to remember her.”

The students want to build a covered trolley stop at the edge of campus, near the football stadium, that would feature a plaque with Kali’s name on the inside.

They are also considering having a picture of Kali painted on the underside of the wooden shelter, which would serve as a stop for a trolley that transports people through the city.

Anna, a 14-year-old member of the Leo Club, the student group organizing the memorial, said organizers have come up with preliminary designs but are still seeking public suggestions.

They are also looking for financial backing and plan to hold a meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Nordhoff High library to share their ideas and rally community support for the project.

For more information, contact Leo Club advisor Rick Carreon at 640-0562.