Death of Boy, 8, Adds a Tragic Footnote to a Charitable Gesture

The Saturday before Christmas had been a satisfying day for Maria Dzida. As director of the Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen in Santa Ana, she helped throw a holiday party for 200 needy families.

Six hundred children had their photographs taken with Santa Claus. There was hot chocolate, whipped cream and gingerbread cookies for everyone.

And as she does every year, Dzida personally paid for Christmas presents for the less fortunate living near the Civic Center. This time, it was $11,000 worth of Target gift certificates handed out to 720 people, mostly kids.

But on television later that evening, Dzida heard the news of an 8-year-old Santa Ana boy, Marcos Chico, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver as he walked home with his mother and siblings from Christmas shopping. Then her heart sank when she saw video of the accident scene on Grand Avenue near 14th Street, with Target shopping bags strewn along the road.

“I cried until 4 a.m.,” said Dzida, who lives in Costa Mesa and has volunteered for 14 years at the soup kitchen. “I kept thinking, ‘If I hadn’t bought those stupid gift certificates....’ But then I realized, at least the last day of his life was a happy one.”

One week later, those at the soup kitchen set up a small shrine to honor the life of Marcos, whose family frequented the soup kitchen, and also to solicit money for his funeral expenses and the family’s mounting medical bills. They also talked about how the boy’s death a few days before Christmas affected their faith.

“You don’t understand it, but you accept it,” said Andy Saavedra, who 17 years ago founded the soup kitchen at St. Joseph Church that feeds about 700 each Saturday. “You have to have faith like when we started this ministry. People kept asking me, ‘Aren’t you afraid you won’t have enough food or volunteers?’ That’s never happened, thanks to God.”

Dzida said the tragedy had spiritual resonance because of Christmas. “This is what faith is about,” Dzida said. “This is what we cling to. Christmas is a time when God comes to us and says, ‘I’m with you in all your tragedy. I’d rather be with you than in heaven.’ ”

The accident that killed Marcos also injured his mother, Sara Jimenez, 36; sister, Abigail, 11; and brother, Alexis, 6.

Friends of the family said Saturday that only Abigail remained at Western Medical Center-Santa Ana. They said she had been in an induced coma because of head injuries. The family was in seclusion in their Santa Ana apartment.

A press release issued Saturday by the city said that although both parents worked, and the father held two jobs, they had no medical insurance for their children and would be hard-pressed to cover the funeral expenses.

Police have said that the driver, Marisela Garcia Cesena, 25, was being held on suspicion of felony hit-and-run. Cesena and two passengers fled after their SUV crashed into a concrete wall, though Cesena later returned, authorities said.

As volunteers served lunch Saturday in a courtyard at St. Joseph Church, a steady stream of people stopped to look at the shrine for Marcos. On the table were two school photos of the boy, a small bouquet, unlighted candles and a tinfoil-covered shoebox for donations. A sign read: Marcos Chico, 1995-2003, Rest in Peace, Deseance en Paz.

Neighbor Maria Jimenez, who is not related to Marcos’ mother, said the 8-year-old loved to run, play soccer and sing. “He was just a good boy.”

A funeral Mass for Marcos is scheduled for 10 a.m. Wednesday.

Donations may be made by check to: Sara Jimenez, c/o St. Joseph Church, 727 Minter St., Santa Ana, CA 92701-4132.