May 10, 2007

Candlelight vigil for a gentle giant

Marcus Keppert

Dozens gather to remember Pioneer freshman Marcus Keppert, killed
last year by drunk driver while crossing Almaden Expressway

In a somber memorial to the 6-foot-7-inch friend they called the “gentle giant,” dozens of Marcus Keppert’s fellow Pioneer High School students and family members gathered last Sunday night at the corner of Almaden Expressway and Camden Avenue. Last year, on May 6, Marcus was killed by a drunk driver as he tried to cross the expressway late at night. The driver left the scene after hitting Marcus, who was thrown 300 feet by the accident’s impact. His senseless death left an indelible impact on everyone who knew the quiet boy.

His older brothers Niko and Alex Pagan remembered their little brother, saying “he always looked out for his brothers and his brothers always looked out for him.”

“He was my gentle giant,” said Keppert’s mother Elaine Aviles after the accident. “He never talked back and always respected everyone. He was a good boy.”

Aviles receives a hug from Joni Gingrich. Photos by Dan Miranda	The crowd holds up their lighted candles as a tribute to Marcus at the end of the vigil at the corner of Almaden Expressway and Camden Avenue in San Jose on May 6. Photos by Dan Miranda
Marcus’ mother Elaine Aviles consoles her other son Alex Pagan as he wipes tears from his face during the candlelight vigil for Marcus.	John Francis of Willow Glen lays flowers on a makeshift memorial for Marcus as the sun’s rays stream across the cross before the candlelight vigil. John's daughter went to school with Marcus.