RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Samantha Brooks, 9, left, and Susan Bowyer, 10, both members of Girl Scout Troop 361, held candles during last night's vigil at the site of last week's crash that killed 10-year-old Alacia Williams and HPD officer Ryan Goto on Farrington Highway.
In memory
of AlaciaA Girl Scout troop mourns a
brave 10-year-old girl who was
always ready to try something new
The Girl Scouts of Troop 361 remember 10-year-old Alacia Williams as their brave sister, the one who always wanted to ride the scariest rides at the water park and was not afraid to sleep alone on overnight camping trips.
CORRECTION
Friday, Aug. 1, 2003>> Kelley Pittman attended a vigil Wednesday for 10-year-old Alacia Williams, who died in a chain-reaction accident July 23. Pittman's first name was misspelled on Page A10 yesterday.
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin strives to make its news report fair and accurate. If you have a question or comment about news coverage, call Editor Frank Bridgewater at 529-4791 or email him at fbridgewater@starbulletin.com.
Mostly though, they remember her as their friend.
"I miss her," said 9-year-old Samantha Brooks. "She was always happy. ... I went to her birthday party, and we played in her room and in her pool and watched TV.
"She was a good friend."
About 50 Girl Scouts and their families gathered last night on the shoulder of the Waianae-bound lane of Farrington Highway, where Alacia died, and held candles and signs in her memory.
Alacia, along with police solo bike officer Ryan Goto, 35, was killed July 23 after her family's car was hit from behind and sent into the path of Goto and four other officers on motorcycles.
The collision left five other people hospitalized and a troop of little girls having to deal with death.
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Kelly Dosch, right, held her daughter, Aizalynn Atanes, 9, while her other daughter, Aishalei Atanes, 11, knelt at the roadside memorial on Farrington Highway last night.
"It's still really hard. ... For a lot of the girls, it's still really fresh," said troop leader Julie Patten. "But mainly this is what they wanted to do.
"It's sad, but we're trying to think of the good things."
Memories of Alacia, though painful, sometimes brought smiles to their young faces.
"I remember when we were at the water park, we were racing to see who could eat our food the fastest," said 10-year-old Susan Bowyer. "And then we played tag in the Lazy River (the inner-tube ride at Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park)."
Susan then remembered something sad and put her head on her mother's shoulder and cried. Her mother, Lorene Bowyer, said her daughter feels bad because she went home during a camping trip last week and left Alacia to sleep in the tent alone.
"She thinks she should have stayed," said Lorene Bowyer. "But Alacia would have slept alone anyway.
"She was that kind of girl. She was never afraid."
Patten, who was also Alacia's fourth-grade teacher at Maili Elementary School, agreed.
"Alacia was one of the bravest children I knew," she recalled. "She always backed the underdog and was never afraid to try anything.
"If there was a group project in school, she was the one on her team to get it done."
During the vigil, Alacia's friends signed their names on an inflatable lifesaver and left it at a small memorial at the crash site, right next to the scorched earth where the motorcycles set the brush on fire.
But even surrounded by the painful past, Alacia's friends said they remember one thing clearly about her that still makes them happy.
"Her cheerful smile," said 10-year-old Kelly Pittman.
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Streets closed today
for officer’s funeral
Streets bordering Borthwick Mortuary will be closed to traffic from noon to 7 p.m. today for services for Honolulu police motorcycle officer Ryan Goto, who was killed in an accident last week.Maunakea Street will be closed between Vineyard Boulevard and Kukui Street. Kukui Street will be closed between River Street and Nuuanu Avenue.
There will be a police motorcade for Goto beginning at 9 a.m. tomorrow.
The motorcade will start at Borthwick on Maunakea Street, then move Diamond Head on Vineyard Boulevard to Punchbowl Street, to King Street, mauka on Victoria Street and then Ewa on Beretania Street past Honolulu police headquarters.
The procession will then travel mauka on Punchbowl Street to Pali Highway to Kamehameha Highway and end at Hawaiian Memorial Park in Kaneohe.
Goto, 35, was killed July 23 in a chain-reaction collision on Farrington Highway near Honokai Hale subdivision. Also killed in the crash was 10-year-old Alacia Williams.
Star-Bulletin staff
