4 Simi Plane Crash Victims Are Mourned

After suffering the agony of the unknown for more than a week, family and friends are mourning the loss of four Simi Valley residents whose bodies were discovered in the tangled wreckage of a small plane on a desolate, snow-covered Arizona mountaintop.

The Cessna 182 and its occupants--Don and Peggy Muchmore, Peggy’s son Brandon Miller and his Simi Valley High School classmate Venessa Gonzalez--had been missing since April 18.

The crash site, about 40 miles northeast of Prescott, was discovered Friday afternoon by a helicopter search team from the Arizona Civil Air Patrol. Dogged by foul weather, patrol teams had been scouring the remote area since the plane’s disappearance, officials said.

The group, with Don Muchmore in the pilot’s seat, was returning to Santa Paula Airport from a trip to Arkansas.

The Muchmores were building a home on ranchland near the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, where 18-year-old Brandon was to have attended next year on a full academic scholarship.

Continuing their return trip from Albuquerque, N.M., on the morning of April 18, the group flew into wintry, inclement weather, according to a Yavapai County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman.

A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman said the exact cause of the crash--found at an elevation of 7,300 feet--is under investigation.

Friends said Don Muchmore, a recently retired Ventura County sheriff’s deputy, volunteered as an assistant track and field coach at Simi Valley High School.

“Don was explaining to me before they left how much he was loving retirement,” said Mike Winkler, a teacher and cross-country coach at Simi Valley High School. “This is beyond belief. Flying was something Don loved to do. He did it all the time. He made many trips to Arkansas.”

Along with having Brandon and Venessa on his cross-country team, Winkler had both seniors in his economics class.

“The two were really, really good friends and such excellent students,” he said. Both students excelled in their studies, Winkler said, and were respected by their peers.

“It’s a shame. They were always such upbeat, happy students,” Winkler said.

On Saturday, their classmates spoke about the pair’s work ethic.

“Brandon was the hardest-working guy I knew,” said Ranjit Lal, 18, a classmate and cross-country team member. “He didn’t have to do anything twice because he did it so good the first time.”

Venessa, 17, had recently received word that she had been accepted at Brigham Young University, said Louise Ramirez, a close friend of Venessa’s mother, Yvonne Robledo.

“Her life revolved around helping people,” Ramirez said. “If somebody was down, she was there to help pick them up. Everybody thought of her as an angel.”

Venessa, who was interested in studying physical therapy, was invited to go on the trip to Arkansas so she could check out the university campus.

Though Venessa had her sights set on BYU--”she loved the Mormon religion,” Ramirez said--family and friends suggested that she pursue all collegiate options and apply elsewhere as well.

“The pain is overwhelming,” Ramirez said.