San Marcos High School students and teachers were grieving the loss of local teenager Dan Perez on Thursday after news of his fatal car accident spread across campus.
Perez, a 16-year-old junior, was killed Wednesday night when his vehicle collided with a big rig truck on Highway 101 near Bates Road.
The California Highway Patrol said Perez entered the northbound freeway lanes from the Highway 150 off-ramp, driving the wrong way until his Mustang clipped a tractor-trailer and his vehicle landed on its roof.
Perez was declared dead at the scene, and it has not been determined whether alcohol or drugs were a factor in the crash.
On Thursday, San Marcos Principal Ed Behrens said the school is grieving Perez’s death. He said he heard the news of Perez’s death from the school resource officer Thursday morning.
“We were all shocked and saddened to hear about the tragedy that had occurred,” Behrens said.
Perez played on the school’s baseball team his freshman and sophomore years at the school and was looking forward to playing lacrosse this semester.
“He was a stellar scholar/athlete,” Behrens said, adding that Perez had a grade point average of 3.66. “Pretty much all day we’ve been working on creating a plan to provide assistance to the school community and to the community at large.”
On Thursday, the school set up a compassion center on campus with the help of the county’s mental health department where students and teachers could talk and grieve.
Members of the school’s baseball team found each other and came together to the compassion center, Behrens said.
On Friday, the center will also be open from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the school’s career center, located at 4750 Hollister Ave.
The school will also be holding a moment of silence during first period on Friday morning and during the school’s football game on Friday night.
Several of Perez’s teachers remembered him on Thursday, describing him as a team player who was well-loved.
“From a coach’s point of view, he was willing to do whatever it took to help his team,” said Sergio Castellanos, baseball coach of Perez’s freshman team. “Danny was always upbeat and positive, he got along well with all of his teammates, and everyone admired him and loved him for the person that he was.”
Perez’s chemistry teacher, Kimberly Tilton, said Perez was a gifted student with a sense of humor.
“I can still see Dan laughing at one of my corny jokes from the back corner of my class,” she said. “It’s hard to accept that I won’t be celebrating his walk across the graduation stage.”
Tilton said Perez was an “exceptional young man” and had the potential to become a great scientist.
“It was truly a pleasure getting to know him,” she said. “My heart goes out to all of his family and friends for their terrible loss.”
Lauren Meier, program facilitator with the school’s special education department, said it’s important for parents and family members of grieving students to allow them to talk about their grief.
“It’s really important to listen to the students,” she said. “And keep in mind that all children grieve differently. … Keeping the open line of communication is key.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Lara Cooper can be reached at lcooper@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
