People light way home for Kerstetter family « The Chronicle-Telegram

People light way home for Kerstetter family

Filed by Melissa Hebert March 20th, 2010 in Top Stories.

ELYRIA — As day turned to night, they worked.

Housewives and office workers, children and senior citizens, city residents and suburbanites, hurried to make paper bag luminarias, set them along North Abbe Road and light the candles within so the family of Elyria police Officer James Kerstetter would see a glowing sign of the community’s support as they drove home from the last night of calling hours at Bauer-Laubenthal-Mercado Funeral Home on Friday night.

The idea came about as several area residents gathered earlier this week at Quaker Steak & Lube in Sheffield, said Debbie Caudill of Sheffield.

More photos below.

“We all got together through (the memorial page for Kerstetter on) Facebook,” Caudill said. “So many people wanted to help, to show our support for the family.”

And people from all over Elyria and surrounding communities helped make it happen.

Caudill works at Kurtz Brothers landscaping in Avon, and the company donated sand for the luminarias, as well as its parking lot as the spot for the luminarias to be made and picked up for transport to North Abbe Road.

Lowe’s in Avon donated fireplace lighters, sand and bags. Pat Catan’s craft store donated tealight candles for the luminarias and flags to decorate the route. Local veterans groups also donated flags and some individuals brought their own tealights.

All ages showed up, Caudill said, from one woman in her 80s to toddlers with their parents.

Caudill said it took between 12 and 15 carloads to get all the luminarias to North Abbe, even with the help of a flatbed truck with one load.

“We’ve never experienced anything like this, and God willing, never will again,” she said. “But we pulled together as a community.”

Along the road late Friday afternoon, people were seen coming out of their homes placing flags in the grass near the curb. A couple was seen tying blue ribbons to telephone poles.

Brenda Hazelwood and Betty Lindenberg, both of Elyria, were camped out on a bench at the west entrance to Lorain County Community College along North Abbe. They each held signs of support for Elyria police and Kerstetter’s family.

Many passing motorists honked their approval.

“I know a lot of officers,” Hazelwood said. “It’s affected everyone. It’s so sad.”

Both said they will be there this morning to show support as the procession goes from the funeral home to the funeral at the LCCC field house.

As dusk fell, a group of teen girls showed up at the LCCC entrance, ready to begin lighting the luminarias. Ashley Montgomery, Lyndsay Mudrak, Megan Smith, Mariah Baisden and

Kelly Montgomery are Brookside High School classmates and friends of Kerstetter’s daughters.

The girls said they’re ready to help their friends any way they can.

“Sometimes it may be just hanging out, or going out and doing something or being there to talk,” Ashley said.

“We’ll do whatever we can to show that we love them,” Lyndsay said.

Contact Melissa Hebert at 329-7129 or mrhmeola@gmail.com.