Teens Urged to Learn From Tragedy

Dozens of family members and friends gathered at a local park Thursday to comfort each other and share stories about four Camarillo High School students killed in a car crash last weekend.

Friends described James Saltee, 17, as a leader; Trevor Beasley, 16, as a jokester; Matthew Daro, 16, as the quiet one; and Pamela Joy “Candy” Legaspi, 16, as beautiful and brainy.

“I know they are in a place right now that is better than down here.” said Blake Chamberlain, a Camarillo High senior. He said the boys, all snowboarders, had probably found better snow where they are now.

The four high school juniors were apparently killed Saturday night when their car veered off the highway and slammed into an oak tree off the northbound 101 Freeway near Los Olivos, authorities said. They were on their way to a Mardi Gras festival in San Luis Obispo.

But they never made it. The victims’ car, which had slid down an embankment and hit the tree, was discovered by a passing trucker Tuesday morning. The cause and exact time of the accident were still under investigation.

Melissa Beasley, Trevor’s mother, described her son as a young man who loved to entertain people, whether with a joke or a song. She also used the event to encourage her son’s friends to learn from the tragedy.

“Make the best of your life, and be careful,” she said.

Before the event, which was held in Mission Oaks Community Park under a large gazebo adorned with colorful flowers and photographs of the victims, a tearful John Saltee said he had been planning to give his son a new car last Sunday.

The customized Toyota Echo was a reward for his son’s improved grades and six months of work at a local seafood restaurant.

“I wish Trevor and Matt and James were here,” Saltee said. The retired Los Angeles Fire Department captain said his son had aspired to be a firefighter and had planned to attend college after graduation, like his older brothers Josh, 25, and Danny, 20.

John Beasley told the crowd that the victims wouldn’t want their friends to be sad but rather to celebrate their lives. He encouraged attendees to enjoy the gathering, which included stacks of hot pizzas, cold sandwiches, soda pop and blaring music.

“The only thing I can say is they were all together when it happened,” Beasley said of the three boys, who had been close friends since kindergarten.

In between hugs and tears, Daro’s friends recalled his love of skateboarding at Mission Park and surfing at local beaches. The girl’s high school junior varsity basketball team turned out to honor Legaspi, their teammate.

A joint funeral service for the three boys is scheduled for 1 p.m. Tuesday at Camarillo Community Church off Las Posas Road. Funeral arrangements for Legaspi were not available.