At both a taco fundraiser at Sonora Cantina and a car wash yesterday, family and friends rallied in support of Elena Martinez, the 31-year-old Big Bear Lake resident who lost her life during Wednesday’s storm when a tree struck her moving vehicle on Catalina Road. Her coworkers at Big Bear Cool Cabins have also established a fund in her name at Union Bank; this fund will ultimately benefit Martinez’s family, which includes husband Francisco and four children, ages 2 to 15. For those who would like to make a contribution in honor of Martinez, a woman described by coworker Johanna Reyes as very giving and loving who “helped everyone with anything that she could,” donations may be left at the Big Bear Cool Cabins offices (at 40375 Big Bear Boulevard) on Red Ant Hill or at Union Bank in the Interlaken Center. Says Union Bank’s Carol Mulvihill, “Any of our employees can help with that, just come on in.” Funeral specifics for Martinez have not yet been announced, though will likely take place at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. For more on Elena Martinez, see our story posted on June 4.
Update on services for Elena Martinez: Viewing at St. Joseph’s (on the North Shore, just east of Stanfield Cutoff) on Friday, June 12, from 2-7:30pm, Rosary and wake following at 7:30pm. Memorial mass, to be presided over by Father Mike, on Saturday, June 13 at [updated] 10am at St. Joseph’s.
