Costa students remember friend who died
Mira Costa Junior Max Yollin plays guitar at a memorial Monday evening at Dockweiler Beach for Darius Smith. Photo by Austin Siegemund-Broka by Austin Siegemund-Broka Darius Smith always loved bonfires at El Segundo’s Dockweiler Beach. In his memory, roughly 50 of his classmates gathered there Monday night to chat and laugh beside a crackling bonfire while waves fell gently on the shore. A few of the friends started singing when Costa junior Max Yollin pulled out his guitar. Gradually, the crowd of voices grew as he strummed Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida.” It seemed a fitting sendoff. “Whenever we were bored over the summer, we would organize a bonfire,” Mira Costa junior Thomas Farnham said. “Darius would always come, he would be the one to bring the wood.” Costa students are still reeling from Smith’s death. The Mira Costa junior took his life March 10 at his Redondo Beach home, according to the LA County Department of Coroner. “He didn’t seem to have any real issues,” Redondo Beach Police Sgt. Phil Keenan said. “He seemed to be a well-adjusted kid. It was pretty surprising — usually, you see telltale signs. From talking to his friends and family, there did not appear to be any of…
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