Mourners Gather to Remember Crash Victim Kimberly Van Gorden, 20

It was a solemn walk, through a lobby where 14 small ceramic angel figurines watched over an entryway and a dozen or so small birds flew from branch to branch in a glass birdcage display.

And along the way, the friends and family of Kimberly A. Van Gorden embraced and reminisced.

Mourners for Van Gorden, the 20 year-old Beachwood resident who died in a high-speed car crash into Pine Beach Elementary School Feb. 3, gathered at Carmona-Bolen Funeral Home on Main Street, Toms River on Tuesday.

Many who came to celebrate her short life lined the chairs along the wall of the funeral home, sharing embraces, whispers, tears and joyful memories of Van Gorden.

She was one of three who died in an automobile accident Feb. 3. Van Gorden, along with two friends — Matthew Budesa, 20, of Pine Beach and Matthew Witzgall, 21, Toms River — all died when the 2011 Hyundai Accent that Budesa was driving crashed into the wall of the Pine Beach Elementary School.

Recent pictures of a smiling Van Gorden, a silver necklace round her neck and a white t-shirt reflecting a sunny day, were displayed. In each recent picture, her smile and her high blond ponytail show a happy young adult, while other pictures give glimpses into the grade school days of Van Gorden.

Her diploma from Toms River High School South, and pictures of Van Gorden with friends and family and the animals friends said she loved to care for — all were surrounded by balloons, teddy bears, and arrangements of flowers.

Her picture smiles out above Mary Elizabeth Frye’s poem “Do not stand at my grave and weep,” as the other side of prayer cards are printed with a watercolor of a young blonde angel in flight.

Mourners quietly signed pages to a guest book and paid their respects as more flower arrangements arrived. Visitation for Van Gorden was 2-4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. Tuesday.

The Ocean County Prosecutor’s office continues to investigate what caused their vehicle to crash through the school early Feb. 3, cutting short three lives.

Van Gorden was born July 3, 1990.