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Kaycie Lynn Blood

May 30, 1995 - June 20, 2003

It was the last day of Spring in 2003. It was also to be the last day that we would see our little girl Kaycie alive.

Kaycie was only eight years old. In May, she had proudly graduated from second grade at Mesquite Elementary School in Apple Valley, CA. and was looking forward to becoming a third grader. Kaycie loved to write and, her dream was to become a school teacher.

Our little Ladybug had a real sparkle about her. She loved to dance, sing and play with butterflies. And, Kaycie adored her brother Shane, and he adored her right back even though she was his “”little”” sister. She charmed everyone who met her.

On June 20, 2003, at approximately 11:42 AM, Kaycie was riding her purple, 20-inch bicycle in the Tu-Su Circle cul-de-sac where we live in Apple Valley. At the same time, a San Bernardino County trash truck was collecting trash on Tonkin Avenue. Kaycie had followed the truck and waved to the driver as he performed his duties. He waved back and then proceeded to turn into the Tu-Su Circle cul-de-sac. Kaycie followed some distance behind, continuing to watch the garbage being collected. At the south end of the cul-de-sac, the garbage truck reversed to execute a three-point turn to exit the cul-de-sac. The audible back-up warning device, as required under the California Vehicle Code, did not operate.

Kaycie never stood a chance. She was struck by the garbage truck, throwing her violently to the ground and causing massive blunt force trauma to her head, killing her.

We know that Kaycie is safe in God’s arms. But that does not stop our hearts from aching or from missing her so much. Kaycie has left us far too early, and so it is very important to our family to make sure that her death does not simply become another faceless statistic.

We don’t want to see another child backed-over and killed, and that’s why the Blood Family will be working to help get laws enacted that will require garbage trucks, delivery vehicles, vans, pickup trucks and SUVs to have appropriate warning sensors and visual devices that will compensate for their larger blind spots.

Until our lawmakers take action, we hope that anyone who owns a larger sized vehicle will do the responsible thing by installing a rear vision system. We commend people like David Mendoza and his company, HitchCAM Corporation for coming up with solutions to the blind spot problem, and we’ve even put a HitchCAM on our family’s Toyota 4 Runner. Some people may think that such devices are an accessory, but we strongly believe that they are really a necessity that can help prevent accidents and save lives.

On June 2, 2004 we planted a beautiful Flowering Plum tree at Kaycie’s school. She would have turned nine on May 30th and we wanted to do something special to celebrate her memory in a way that would be meaningful to us and to the community. We hope that the event will motivate our lawmakers and the makers of our vehicles to listen to what we have to say and do the right thing by enacting laws that will protect those who are near and dear to us.

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