Community in Mourning over Death of MKHS Alumnus
PHOTOS courtesy of RIP KEVIN LA; MOOR Montage by YIBEI LIU
DIANA LI
DENISE TIEU
News Editors
On Nov. 11, friends and family members mourned the tragic and unexpected loss of 19 year-old Kevin La, who died in a hiking accident at Hermit Falls, a hiking trail in Arcadia, California.
According to KTLA News, cliff jumping is a popular pastime at Hermit Falls that many hikers partake in. La was hiking with several friends at the Angeles National Forest when they decided to jump into the water below. La was the sixth to jump; however, when he surfaced from the water, he was unconscious and was later pronounced dead at the Huntington Memorial Hospital.
A graduate of Mark Keppel High School (MKHS), La was a student at Cal State Fullerton and was majoring in kinesiology. In honor of his memory, La’s fraternity, the Alpha Phi Omega, held a candlelight vigil on Nov. 18; a second vigil was later held at MKHS’ football field on Nov. 22.
His family and friends created a Facebook page, “RIP Kevin La,” in order “to honor [their] dearly beloved friend and brother” and unify a community in mourning. The page received over 2,000 likes and many left comments expressing the impact that La had on their lives and giving their condolences to La’s family. La’s family and friends also shared photos to further reminisce the times they shared with him.
“Kevin was [one of] those people who’d just brighten your day,” senior Henry Yu, La’s cousin, said. “He motivated everyone and his smile could make you happy even when you were down.”
An open-casket viewing was held on Nov. 24 at the Rose Hills Memorial Park and Mortuary, which was a public event that accommodated the large amount of attendees. The funeral took place the following day at the same location as a private event.
La’s family and friends also set up a fundraiser with the website Giveforward to help pay for funeral expenses. Donors contributed a grand total of $10,663 to the cause. The creators of the page encouraged others to bring joy and happiness to others as La had done.
“He will forever be cherished in our memories and forever live on in our hearts. Remember him for all the joy that he has brought,” the page description said. “Cherish the loved ones in your life now and do what Kevin did to us; bring them joy and happiness.”