An East Bay family with deep ties to local schools is facing an unimaginable loss after a spring break trip to Oregon ended in a fiery crash that killed an 18-year-old teen and seriously injured multiple family members, according to Oregon authorities and a fundraiser organized by family friends. (KPIC)
Davin Jack Smith, 18, of El Sobrante, was killed April 6 in a crash on northbound Interstate 5 near Canyonville in Douglas County, Oregon, according to Oregon reporting that cited state police.
Authorities said Smith was driving a maroon Honda CR-V when it struck a stalled Freightliner truck hauling a loaded trailer on an uphill stretch of highway. The collision caused the Honda and cargo in the trailer to catch fire.
Police said the truck had stalled several times before the collision. The truck driver, Brenden Larry Christensen, 61, of San Diego, was arrested on suspicion of DUII and manslaughter, and impairment is believed to have been a contributing factor in the crash, according to Oregon coverage of the state police account.
A family known across the local school community
According to the fundraiser, the family had left Northern California the morning after Easter to visit relatives in Oregon for spring break. Davin was traveling with his father, Lawrence Smith, his twin sister Annika, and Annika’s boyfriend, Ivan Gonzalez of Hercules. (GoFundMe)
The fundraiser says Lawrence Smith is a longtime teacher in the West Contra Costa school district. Davin and Annika are both 18-year-old seniors, and their mother, Elizabeth Sibitz, is a longtime special education teacher at Valley View Elementary and a former parents club president there.
Authorities said Lawrence Wayne Smith Jr., 60, and Annika Jace Smith, 18, were airlifted to hospitals with serious injuries. Ivan Amadeo Gonzalez, 19, suffered comparatively minor injuries and was taken by ground ambulance to a hospital.
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Grief spreads through De Anza and beyond
The crash has sent shockwaves through the local school community. KTVU reported that flowers, candles, and handwritten notes have been piling up outside De Anza High School, where Davin was a student, and that grief counselors were being made available for students and staff. (KTVU FOX 2 San Francisco)
Family friend Sara Webb-Schmitz told KTVU that the family’s financial strain is now layered on top of overwhelming grief, noting that Lawrence Smith is expected to face a lengthy recovery and that both parents may be unable to work for some time.
Fundraiser launched to help with funeral and medical costs
A GoFundMe organized by Barbara Osterman says the money will help cover Davin’s funeral, trauma care, daily needs, and future medical and rehabilitation costs for the family. As of Tuesday morning, the fundraiser had raised more than $40,000 toward a $55,000 goal.
The fundraiser says Elizabeth Sibitz traveled to Oregon with the couple’s other two children after the crash, as the family scrambled to support Annika and Lawrence while also beginning to make funeral arrangements for Davin.
For a community that knows this family through classrooms, school events, and years of service, the loss is being felt far beyond one household.
