Victims of Angeles Crest Highway Wreck Remembered

Two years after an out-of-control big rig barreled into the crowded intersection of Foothill Boulevard and Angeles Crest Highway, killing her husband and daughter, Yanette Posca said the reality of loss is still sinking in.

"People say, 'You look happier,' and I think, 'Really? I'm not,''' she said Saturday, surrounded by some 50 friends and family members, many who rode motorcycles in a caravan from Palmdale to Glenola Park in La Cañada.

Harleys, Ducatis and BMW bikes roared up Angeles Crest Highway in a memorial Ito Posca thought his father, a motorcyle afficianado, would find a fitting tribute. Angel Posca and his daughter, Angelina, died April 1, 2009, when a truck driven by Marcos Costa lost it brakes and plowed into their car before smashing into the old Flintridge Bookstore & Coffeehouse.

Costa, 45, is charged with two counts of murder, vehicular manslaughter and felony reckless driving. He was released from Men's central jail in Los Angeles on $340,000 bail and awaits trial.

Ito Posca, who rode his father's Ducati to the memorial, organized the second-annual motorcycle ride and plans to hold the event every year.

"Dad loved rides; I think he'd appreciate this,'' he said, his voice cracking.

The 30-year-old Palmdale resident said one of the things he misses most is the razor-sharp wit his father and sister would banter back and forth at the dinner table--like an inside joke that only they understood. To have had such a close relationship and then to die together was uncanny, he said.

As far as Costa's upcoming trial, Posca said he hasn't been paying attention.

"It's really hard because [the court hearings] just bring it all back for me,'' he said.

Saturday's ride ended at Glenola Park, a quarter of a mile from the April 2009 accident, and the site of a commemorative plaque that the City of La Cañada Flintridge affixed to a stone in the garden. Candles and a laminated letter penned by Ito Posca flank the plaque.

Angelina's friends, wearing T-shirts that read "Never to forget the ones who meant the most,'' described the girl they'd known since kindergarten and first grade as an all-around happy person. Tears gave way to giggles as the eighth-grade teenagers, sprawled in the grass in front of the plaque, recounted story after story about the girl they'll never forget.

"Pretty girls can be mean, but she was gorgeous and so nice,'' said Karina Rowe.

"There was never an awkward silence with her,'' interjected Meigan Flanagan.

The girls called their friend a "straight-A student'' who loved cheerleading, dancing, and laughing.

With tears in her eyes, Yanette Posca laughed that her academically driven daughter caused her to be late for her own father's funeral. Yanette hadn't counted on taking Angelina to school that day. But Angelina never missed school - she wanted perfect attendance.

It was only after the accident that Angelina's classroom seat sat empty.