Commemorative wall to be dedicated in Manhattan Beach on Feb. 11

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A dedication ceremony for the recently installed Pearson-Wilhite-Stewart-Adenhart Commemorative Wall will take at 12:30 p.m. Feb. 11 adjacent to the Big Marine baseball field at 1625 Marine Ave. in Manhattan Beach.

Henry Pearson, Courtney Stewart and Nick Adenhart died in April of 2009 from injuries they sustained when the car in which they were riding was broadsided by a drunk driver.

Jon Wilhite, also riding in the car, suffered severe injuries.

Pearson and Wilhite played baseball at Manhattan Beach Mira Costa High, and the Big Marine Field is home to the school’s frosh-soph and junior varsity teams.

Adenhart was a rookie pitcher with the Angels. His friends, Pearson, Stewart and Wilhite, were all former Cal State Fullerton students.

Organizers hope that the wall reminds people about the dangers of drinking and driving.

‘While we all remember those we have lost, our families believe it is critical to remind everyone, and especially our teens and young adults, about how a single moment of drunk driving can devastate innocent peoples’ lives,’ Pearson’s father, Nigel, said in a statement.

--Mike Hiserman