RiverLiver
Leo
HDF Bronze Supporter
D-DAY
 
Costa Mesa CA
Posts: 5,318
APPD 0.67
Post Rank: 16
60' Hatteras
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Posted: Sep. 22 2003,5:16 pm |
Post # 25 |
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I found this over on Hot Boat
By NATALYA SHULYAKOVSKAYA
The Orange County Register
LAGUNA HILLS – They were a tight family and called themselves The Four Herberts.
Almost every weekend, the family went either to the desert or to the river together.
Sunday afternoon, their driveway was full of stunned teenagers, friends of the son and the daughter, their eyes puffy, their cigarettes trembling.
Jonathan Herbert, 21, and his 18-year- old sister, Jacquel, were killed Friday night in a hit-and-run power boat accident on the Colorado River near Parker, Ariz., when another speedboat plunged into the side of Herbert's boat and went over it. Their friend Ashley Rollins, 18, of Mission Viejo also was killed. Another passenger, Josh Rogers, 18, of Anaheim, was critically injured and remained in a coma at St. Joseph's hospital in Phoenix on Sunday afternoon.
The accident happened at about 6:30 p.m. near the shore on the Arizona side of the river in a popular boating spot known as Parker Strip, about 35 miles south of Lake Havasu.
The kids, their parents, Wayne and Jana Herbert, and several friends went to the Red Rock Resort to hang out at a V-drive powerboat event, a regular gathering of speedboat enthusiasts.
The two boats were not racing each other at the time, said Sgt. Alan Nelson of the La Paz County Sheriff's Department, who is investigating the accident. Their speeds at the time of the accident are not known, Nelson said.
The news of the accident ran quickly through the Laguna Hills neighborhood where the Herberts have lived since it was built 16 years ago. Friends gathered in the driveway, their cell phones constantly ringing. Others drove by in their trucks, asking for any details. The first rumor said seven kids were hurt, because the Herberts went to Arizona with a large crew of friends.
They always did. Jacquel, who had just graduated from Laguna Hills High School, loved to spend time with friends. She loved the ocean and the beach and planned to join the U.S. Navy, said Lacey Thompson, a friend. Friends knew her as "J Star." Even her license plate spelled out the nickname.
"She always talked in those code words (ones that only her closest friends understood) ... she always laughed," said Fabi Calborn, another friend.
After the 9-11 terrorist attacks, Jacquel brought all her friends together for a memorial service by the ocean.
The attack touched Jonathan's spirit, too. He got his grandfather's old U.S. flag and attached it to his truck. He rode around the county with the large flag flapping in the wind. When his mother worried about the family antique, he just said, "What is a better use for a flag?!"
Jonathan, called "Little Jon" because of his short stature, had run a car-detailing business since he was 16. He started by working on cars in his neighborhood. He loved his dirt motorcycle, "The Moto," and was about to open a new car company with a friend.
"He could sell you on anything. He loved his Moto, his truck, his money. And friends and family," said friend Bobby Legate. "He was always like, 'What's up, dude? Let's go riding!'"
Those who knew him closely saw another, kid-like, side of "Little Jon." His boyish bravado softened when he was at home with his family.
Jana Herbert is "all about her kids," neighbor Nancy Winter said. "She always talked about them, whenever you run into her."
Wayne Herbert, a car salesman with a Mercedes-Benz dealership, rode motorcycles with his son.
The neighbors said the family was focused on itself, spending weekends together.
The Herberts, as well as the parents of Ashley Rollins, were at the Arizona resort with their children.
"It is tough," said Nelson, who has been staying in touch with Wayne Herbert since the investigation began.
Rogers' grandparents, whom he lived with, flew out to Phoenix to be with him in the hospital.
Don't Be a Hater
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11-24-2024 Three Word Post.....The Next Generation.... (Rep.#19,435) from: BigDog
