Fondest farewell to two good friends

Suzie Harrison

Last year the community was in mourning after Max Sadler and Mark

Tiner were killed in a car accident in Dana Point over Memorial Day

weekend.

This year, students gathered to remember the two lives that were

cut short. Quietly, hundreds of Laguna Beach High School students

filed into the north gym to commemorate their friends’ on May 27, one

year after the accident.

Seated on the floor in complete silence, they watched a

student-produced film -- a montage of moments that captured Max and

Mark enjoying life and their passions.

Shots of Max surfing filled the screen. Max had surfed since age

5. Later in life, Max procured a spot on the high school surf team

and surfed in NSSA competitions.

The most poignant footage of Max was of his huge smile, standing

on the beach with his board at his side. Clad in a wetsuit, he had

obviously enjoyed a day of surfing.

Mark loved music and loved to rap. Pictures of him rapping brought

smiles to those recounting the times they were with him.

Footage of the memorial their friends created at the scene of the

accident showed the outpouring of love they shared. Hundreds of

bouquets were intermingled with other mementos such as Mark’s

volleyball jersey. There was a broken surfboard next to one of Max’s

surfing trophies.

Tears streamed down countless faces, falling harder with each

frame. Near a wooden cross, a guitar was placed in the dirt to

recognize their love of music. Mark was always on the mike and Max on

guitar.

At the end of the film, the final frame read “Max and Mark we will

never forget. Absent in body; present in spirit.”

Then the crowd made its way silently to the senior quad for the

memorial bench dedication. Laguna artist Marlo Bartels designed Max

and Mark’s individual benches with each minute detail significant to

who they were and what they represented.

Brianna Neal, 18, read a poem. “I knew Max pretty well and am

really close to the Sadler family,” Brianna said. “Today’s memorial

shows us that faith is what is getting us through this -- it keeps us

going strong.”

Kendall Hellman, 17, said things are still difficult and the

anniversary has been hard.

“By being here and seeing the benches, I feel their presence

around us,” Kendal said. “I think of all the good things -- Max’s

smile most of all.”

Brett Landrum, 18, helped create the video memorial.

“I had a lot of fun; it brought back memories, using old pictures.

It made me laugh,” Brett said. But making the film was difficult.

“Remembering a year later, it’s amazing how fast time goes by, but

the pain is the same,” Brett said. “It feels like yesterday and I

feel the emotions as much today.

“They’re smiling down on us, saying don’t grieve, be happy and

celebrate life,” Brett said. “That’s what they’d want us to do.”

“I really miss them a lot; they were great to be around,” said Jim

Suchy, 17. “Special people like Max and Mark aren’t forgotten. It’s

still as hard as it was the first day. I don’t think I’ll ever get

over that pain.”