Two days after 16-year-old Kimberly Jimenez-Soto was struck and killed by a freight train, her family, friends and Santa Clarita community members showed an outpour of support Sunday to raise funds for the teen’s funeral.
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Two events were held to raise funds for Jimenez-Soto’s family — a car wash and a food sale.
“She was a sweetheart. she was the most amazing, beautiful girl ever,” said Juliana Georgy, a 15-year-old friend of Jimenez-Soto.
The teen was a junior at Golden Valley High School.
“I miss her smile around me. She was a really good person,” she said. “I wasn’t that close to her but she mean a lot, we lost someone.”
A coroner’s official said Sunday that preliminary reports indicate Jimenez-Soto’s death was a suicide. Homicide officials are still investigating, but they were not available Sunday.
A GoFundMe page was setup to help the family raise funds for the teens funeral.
Fundraising For A Good Cause
The food sale held at Canyon Country Park from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. was run by friends and family. The family and friends sold tacos and sodas among other foods.
Many of Jimenez-Soto’s family and close friends did not want to comment and requested privacy.
“She always had a smile on her face,” said 15-year-old classmate Kiera Davis. “She kind of stayed to herself.”
Dozens of community members came to the Canyon Country Park to show their support.
“We’re just here to support. The news came around from friends to friends,” said Felix Garcia. “It s a small Spanish community. We decided why not come over and help. We’re with the Outlaws organization, cheerleading and football. I help (Jimenez-Soto’s aunt) with cooking at the events. We all have kids and we never know when we’ll be next. As a small community, we want to come out and support them and chip in.”
A car wash was held in the parking lot of Pep Boys near Home Depot in Canyon Country, just a couple blocks from where Jimenez-Soto was killed.
Close friends and family washed several cars throughout the day to raise funds for the teen’s funeral.
A close friend of the teen was one of the organizers of the car wash and did not want to comment.
The family plans to host more events to raise money for the teen’s funeral, Garcia said.
Apparent Cause of Death
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Division officials reported the cause of death as “an apparent suicide” and that she was “standing in front of the train when it struck her,” said Lt. Fred Corral of the Los Angeles County Department of Coroner’s Office.
Jimenez-Soto was struck by a train at 10:20 a.m. Friday, near the corner of Ruether Avenue and Soledad Canyon Road, according to Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station officials.
A memorial was set up next to the train tracks where she was found near Rainbow Glen.
Initial reports indicated Jimenez-Soto’s death might have been an accident, as opposed to a suicide attempt.
Eastbound Soledad Canyon Road at Rainbow Glen was shut down Friday as officials worked around the collision scene.
Homicide Bureau detectives did handling Jimenez-Soto’s case did not immediately respond to a request for a statement.
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Thank you to everyone who came out to the fundraisers today, and to the many donations received on the gofundme site!!!! Your generous donations, love and support is deeply appreciated!!!!
Since it was a suicide, I wonder what Psychiatric drugs were prescribed for her. There is more and more evidence that Psych drugs are at the bottom of suicides and the like. Since God was removed from schools and our lives, and was replaced with Psychiatry, Psychology and the like, we’ve had more of our kids commit Murder, Suicide, Mass Shootings and so on.
god has nothing to do with this. maybe she didn’t even believe in god. yes, maybe IF she was taking prescription psychiatric drugs at the time, MAYBE it influenced her decision. but god doesn’t have anything to do with suicides. murder or anything.
As a mother and someone that does not believe in God. The problems with our Teens is not that simplistic. It is a combination of many circumstances. The main one being lack of parents. I stay home and volunteer in school three times a week. I can point out the kids that spend long hours in daycare (the majority) because they seek my attention. Parents have to work long hours and come home too tired to spend time with their children, let alone talk to them about drugs, sex etc. No one is there to guide them and help them navigate this ever changing world.
I truly feel sorry that this young lady had to die and that her family and friends have lost part of their hearts.
My prayers & thoughts go out to her family and friends. God be with you
i saw everything…it wasnt suicide… She was listening to music and saw the-FUCK HER RIGHT IN THE PUSSY
It’s in fact very complex in this active life to listen news
on TV, therefore I simply use web for that reason, and get the hottest news.
More than a year , cant belive this happened, its me kim, Alvaro, i have to tell u that miguel pam n me r really sad for the accident that you had. we are going be together one day n we r going to complete the metting we planed that day! See u mija… Im sure u r in a better place…
Hello Alvaro. I would like to speak with you in regards to this incident. We work on behalf of Kimberly’s mom and had a few questions. can you please reply to my email and I can give you a contact number to call me. Thank you very much.
I just want her back to this life and go eat with her
I kwew kim who said it was a suicide .. we where talking to her 10 minutes before the accident i she was ok that day stupid police
Hello Enrique. We are working on behalf of Kimberly’s family. Is there any way you can please give me a call. Anything you know will help us. My number is (818) 887-6620.
What about the poor men on the train they did nothing wrong and they have to live with that the rest of there lives!