KHTS Radio Santa Clarita Radio – Santa Clarita News
The Santa Clarita City Council is expected to discuss the creation of a memorial for the children killed in the 2019 Saugus High shooting, and the potential dedication of Central Park in their honor at an upcoming meeting next month.
On Thursday, Nov. 14, 2019, 14-year-old Dominic Blackwell and 15-year-old Gracie Muehlberger were shot and killed by another student before his own death in a tragic event that also injured three others.
Both Bryan Muehlberger and Frank Blackwell, the fathers of Gracie and Dominic respectively, called in for the public comment portion of the meeting Tuesday.
Blackwell spoke of the importance that Central Park held for not only his own family, but for the community-at-large, and his hopes that dedicating the park in memoriam of his son and Gracie would assist in the healing and grieving process for his wife, Nacy, and their three surviving children.
“When I look into my son Derek’s eyes, I know that I have to put everything I have left into making sure that his pain does not consume him in the same ways that it has devastated my wife, Nancy, and I,” Blackwell said. “I am responsible for ensuring that Derek, Dylan and Devon’s personal journeys of progression into adulthood are supported and closely guided as they learn to process and survive their own unique loss and pain over Dominic.”
Three days after the tragedy, well over 15,000 people gathered at Central Park for a vigil in honor of the victims, the largest gathering in the history of the Santa Clarita Valley, according to the City of Santa Clarita at the time. Thousands more viewers attended online via live stream.
“Help us begin our healing journey by appending the name of Central Park to include ‘in memoriam of Gracie Muehlberger and Dominic Blackwell,’” Blackwell said.
See Related: Family Of Saugus High Shooting Victims Campaign To Rename Central Park
Mayor Pro Tem Bill Miranda noted that the lives of Gracie Muehlberger and Dominic Blackwell should be memorialized in his opinion.
“Really we need to do something meaningful and I’m in favor of it,” said Miranda. “Now that doesn’t necessarily mean naming the whole of Central Park, but maybe something within the park for them.”
Bryan Muehlberger noted that other parks have been renamed in honor of other individuals in the community, specifically referencing Todd Longshore Park in Canyon Country and Duane R. Harte Park in Saugus, both of which were renamed in honor of City Parks and Recreation officials.
“Although the impacts of these individuals are seen throughout the City of Santa Clarita, they were also just doing their job,” Muehlberger said. “In this case, the community is asking for this change.”
Muehlberger acknowledged that the call for dedicating Central Park in memory of his daughter and Dominic has not been unanimous, but that the monumental impact that the two children have had on the community can not be ignored.
“With every movement or change comes resistance. There will always be people that don’t like change, but the City of Santa Clarita must not stand still and must continue to evolve and change,” Muehlberger said. “I know there are people that are against this for many reasons I might not fully understand, but the overwhelming majority of this community feels that this the least the city can do.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, a petition to change the name of the park had gathered over 7,700 signatures.
To sign the petition, click here.
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No this should not happen. A suggestion I have made was to produce a healing garden dedicated to the young victims of Saugus High. Like the one in Thousand Oaks. My daughters boyfriend Cody Coffman was killed in the Thousand Oaks Borderline shooting. I understand or have a good idea how these individuals fee. The healing garden is dedicated to the 12 victims. 12 rose bushes, 12 waterfall, 12 large boulders and open grass. It is very serene, peaceful and tranquil. This was awesome closure for our family.
I dissent. I hate to bring to point that this was not a tragic accident, this was murder. Nobody who was murdered has ever had his name on a park for it, for a good reason. I hate to be the first one to inform you, but I understood those children were up to no-good, and the trust they were in robbed a lot of people. This should be stopped.
Let me be the first one to inform you, Donald, there are many parks named for murder victims.
Let’s for example do Lincoln. There is a Lincoln Park in: Burbank, Simi Valley, Pomona, Corona, Anaheim, La Verne and a Lincoln Park in Lincoln Park. We could go to Kennedy, King, even John Lennon and more.
No, Central Park should not be renamed for a tragic event. The idea of a memorial within the park as suggested by Theresa is a more fitting tribute.