EVERETT – It was four years ago that the families came together in grief. On Friday, the families came together to remember.
With rain and tears falling on fresh flower bouquets, the families gathered at an intersection in Everett where a drunken driver racing a 1994 black Ford Mustang collided with a minivan, killing the van’s driver and two passengers in his sports car.
The families of the victims formed a bond and channeled their pain into drawing awareness to the dangers of drunken driving.
On Friday, on the four-year anniversary of the crash, a sign was unveiled at the fatal site at the corner of 23rd Street and Wetmore Avenue in a brief memorial service Friday.
“Please Don’t Drink and Drive,” reads a sign in bold white letters over a blue background. Below it, a second sign says: “In Memory of Jenny McCollum, 52, Cory Baudry, 18, and Michael Seavy, 20.”
It’s Everett’s first DUI memorial sign.
The accident occurred Feb. 23, 2003, when Grant Fosheim, now 24, was racing his Mustang and slammed into Jenny McCollum’s minivan, which was crossing the intersection.
She died along with two passengers in the Mustang, Baudry and Seavy. A third passenger, Dan Terry, suffered a broken neck but survived.
Police said Fosheim had been drinking rum at a party on the 2500 block of California Street before the accident. His blood alcohol count was more than twice the legal limit.
In 2005, he pleaded guilty to three counts of vehicular homicide and was sentenced to more than six years in prison.
Jenny McCollum, a new grandmother and an Everett antiques dealer, was killed just a few blocks from her Colby Avenue home.
Her husband, Jerry McCollum, said in an e-mail that his family is reminded of their loss every day.
“Each of us talks to Jenny daily, in our hearts. We ask ourselves, ‘What would Jenny think about this? How would Jenny handle this?’ Her spirit is alive and well,” he wrote.
Kathy Weber, Michael Seavy’s mother, said she hopes students driving to Everett High School two blocks away will take notice and think before getting behind the wheel drunk or getting into a car with an impaired driver.
Michael Seavy, who was a passenger, would have turned 24 Friday.
“This is my son’s birthday and I want to celebrate,” said Kathy Weber, fighting back tears.
They shared a birthday and always celebrated together.
Instead of exchanging gifts, she cradled flowers, near her husband, daughter and pastor, and talked about her desire to one day see her son again in heaven.
The car Michael Seavy died in landed near the steps of the Bible Way Church at 2228 Wetmore Ave.
His sister, Rachael McQuery, 26, set down a silver-framed photo of her and Michael at the base of the sign.
Michael never got to meet his 2-year-old niece or his 6-week-old nephew, who was named for him.
“He should still be here to play with my children,” Rachael said.
Pam Baudry, Cory’s mom, dressed in black, quietly set flowers on the wet grass near the memorial sign.
Everett Mayor Ray Stephanson told the families that he hopes the memorial can help “give you some peace.”
Similar signs started sprouting up along roads in Snohomish County in 1995, after Lori Moran battled the county to change its rules to allow the signs. Marysville followed with its own memorial program in 1999.
Moran’s daughters, Kami, 7, and Nichole, 4, were killed when a drunken driver crossed the centerline on Lakewood Road near Lake Goodwin and smashed head on into her husband’s car on Valentine’s Day 1990.
Moran helped the families convince Everett officials to allow the signs here.
Unlike Snohomish County, and Marysville, Everett’s signs include ages.
Moran said that gives a personal touch that will have more impact in deterring people from driving impaired.
“The kids may look at the ages – 18 and 20 – and say, ‘My gosh, that could be my brother,’ ” Moran said. “And look at Jenny, who was 52, and say, ‘That could be my mom.’ “
Reporter David Chircop: 425-339-3429 or dchircop@heraldnet.com.
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