Remembering teenager with ‘gusto for life’

Friends and family of 15-year-old Dylan Ayres, who was killed in a car crash Feb. 20, remembered him Tuesday in a crowded church across the street from Newport Harbor High School, where Dylan was a freshman.

“We are blessed with having had 15 years with Dylan,” said Dylan’s father, Doug Ayres, at the service. “We are thankful for a boy who had such a great gusto for life.”

Dylan, the grandson of Ayres hotel chain chairman Don Ayres Jr., died when he was ejected from an SUV driven by his brother, 17-year-old Dorian Ayres, police said. The single-vehicle accident occurred at 7:50 a.m. on State Route 14 near Ridgecrest. The brothers and another teenager, Charlie Ramser, were on their way to Mammoth Mountain.

About a thousand people, many young, packed into St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church on Tuesday morning; people stood in the back and sat in the aisles. At the request of the Ayres family, the service was casual; the pastor did not wear a traditional robe.

“We want this to be a service that relates as best as possible to the students in this room,” said Pastor John Huffman, who has been the family’s spiritual advisor for 28 years.

Scott Ramser, who’s son Charlie Ramser was riding with Dylan and survived the accident, spoke at the memorial service.

“Dylan always made friends wherever he went,” Scott Ramser said.

Ramser was driving in front of the Ford Expedition driven by Dorian Ayres when the crash occurred. The two families have skied together in Mammoth since the 1960s, Ramser said, as he told the assembled mourners what happened on the day that started with “a beautiful morning.”

While he was driving, Ramser caught a glimpse of the Expedition rolling over behind him. He turned around and headed back toward the Expedition; he saw his son and Dorian climb out of the SUV, he said.

When he saw that they were fine, he thought everything was going to be OK ? until he saw Dylan on his back in the road, he said.

“I held his hand, and a few moments later he was gone,” Ramser said.

At the service, Dylan’s father shared a story about the last family outing they had taken over the weekend before Dylan’s death.

The Ayres family went to Los Angeles and visited some favorite spots, including the Pantry restaurant, Doug Ayres said.

That night, they stayed at the family hotel in Los Angeles. The hotel is a special place, Ayres said. The hotel is built around four olive trees, each one planted in honor of each of Doug and Michele Ayres’ children.

Doug Ayres urged friends and family to visit Dylan’s olive tree in memory of him.