Henry Pearson, Jon Wilhite, Courtney Stewart & Nick Adenhart

Henry Pearson, Jon Wilhite, Courtney Stewart & Nick Adenhart Commemorative Wall Dedication Set for Saturday, February 11, 2012 at Manhattan Beach’s “Big Marine” Baseball Complex

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Cal State Fullerton Baseball Titans & Spirit Squad, Manhattan Beach Youth Baseball, City of Manhattan Beach Align to Heighten Families’ Awareness Efforts to Fight Drunk Driving

MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif. (February 1, 2012) – The City of Manhattan Beach, local youth baseball organizations, Cal State Fullerton Titans and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim will unite on Saturday, February 11 for a 12:30 p.m. dedication ceremony of the recently installed “Pearson-Wilhite-Stewart- Adenhart Commemorative Wall” adjacent to “Big Marine” baseball field located at 1625 Marine Avenue in Manhattan Beach.

Representatives of the Angels, Cal State Fullerton Titans and Spirit Squad, Manhattan Beach Mayor Nick Tell and members of City Council, as well as others involved, will join the Pearson, Wilhite and Stewart families in brief ceremonies, followed by a 1 p.m. Mira Costa High School Mustangs baseball game.

Prior to the game, Mira Costa head baseball coach Cassidy Olson will present a large, commemorative circle that will soon adorn the outfield wall at Mira Costa’s Varsity Field that bears Henry Pearson’s number 12. Pearson played for Mira Costa from 1999-2002 and served as captain during the 2002 season. Pearson and Wilhite rose through the local youth baseball community together, and both played on either Manhattan Beach Little League or Pony League All-Star teams, before also attending Mira Costa and playing there. Mira Costa’s current teams sport their initials on their caps and other gear as a reminder of both teammates, and more importantly, Pearson and Wilhite’s inspirational approach to adversity.

“ There are many people, and many families, beyond our own who were affected by the passing of Henry, Courtney and Nick and the terrible injuries Jon was forced to endure,” said Pearson’s father Nigel Pearson. “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 people’s lives.

“We each hope this commemorative wall – as well as the field itself – can act as an inspiration so that people will think twice about having a drink and then climbing behind the wheel of a car. We have unfortunately sacrificed teammates and close friends, people whom we have loved deeply, and yet we hope that these efforts can help to save future lives so they may not have passed entirely in vain,” Pearson said.

Local organizations including Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Manhattan Beach Police and Mira Costa High School’s PACE (People Attaining Complete Equality) student outreach and awareness program will join the Feb. 11 ceremonies with information about their local programs and activities.

1 Manhattan Beach Little League and Mira Costa Pony League have committed to promoting the Feb. 11 event through their communications channels in the hopes of turning out all of the teen players in each of their programs, as well as their family members. Mira Costa Coach Olson and the Mira Costa Baseball Boosters have pledged to do the same. The three have united to help purchase a new scoreboard for Big Marine and other improvements, in the hopes that Big Marine will act as a home to future tournaments and other community events to continue to raise awareness of drunk driving in Pearson, Wilhite, Adenhart and Stewart’s names.

Big Marine Field hosts Mira Costa’s Frosh-Soph and several Junior Varsity games, and is the home field for Manhattan Beach Little League’s successful Juniors and Seniors programs. The MBLL Seniors All-Stars have proceeded to the Little League World Series in Bangor, Maine and the Western Regional Finals the past two seasons. Big Marine is also heavily trafficked by teens and young adults who play soccer, basketball and other sports, and the new “Pearson-Wilhite-Stewart-Adenhart Commemorative Wall” sits in a central location so that all who use the park will pass by it frequently.

Longtime participants in Manhattan Beach Little League, Pony League and Mira Costa baseball, the Pearson and Wilhite families have pledged future contributions to the Pearson-Wilhite Memorial Fund [Information Below] to continue enhancing Big Marine field. Mira Costa Baseball has held an annual “Henry Pearson Classic” game against rival El Segundo High School the past two seasons, and will expand that to other events including a regional tournament for 2012. The regional tournament will draw upon rivalry teams from the surrounding area, as well as other squads from California and nearby states.

Henry Pearson, Courtney Stewart and Nick Adenhart were killed shortly after midnight on April 9, 2009 when the car in which they were riding was broadsided by a drunk driver whose blood alcohol was more than twice the legal limit, and who was driving on a suspended license from a prior drunk driving conviction from only three years before. Adenhart had been up with the Angels briefly in 2008 but was beginning his first full season as a starter at the time of his death. Law student Pearson was developing a sports management company. Stewart was an honors student at Cal State Fullerton and member of both the Spirit Squad cheerleaders and Alpha Chi Omega sorority, while Wilhite had recently graduated after playing catcher for the CSF Titans baseball team, a perennial power and College World Series finalist in 2007.

Wilhite was the only one to survive the crash, yet endured torn neck ligaments and fractured the bone connecting his spine and skull. The only things holding his head in place were muscle and skin – a condition known as internal decapitation – which claims the lives of more than 95 percent of all persons who suffer such injuries and typically leaves the remainder critically impaired. UC Irvine surgeon Dr. Nitin Bhatia, who fused Wilhite’s head and neck together in a five-hour operation, says only four people are known to have survived such a condition, and Wilhite has since spent countless hours in speech, vision and physical therapy to achieve a near recovery; miraculous enough that he recently started working full time with his dad and brother in the freight business, giving baseball lessons and looks to eventually help with Mira Costa Baseball.

Individuals or organizations wishing to show their support to the Pearson, Wilhite, Stewart and Adenhart Families’ anti-drunk driving efforts through charitable contributions can mail checks to “Pearson-Wilhite Commemorative Fund” care of Wells Fargo Bank, Manhattan Beach Office, 3110 North Sepulveda Blvd; Manhattan Beach, CA; 90266; or drop a check off at any Wells Fargo Location. Please list account #9423723981 in the memo line.The Pearson and Wilhite families have pledged any monies toward enhancements at Big Marine Field so that it might act as a showcase for future tournaments and events to continue to raise awareness of anti-drunk driving efforts.

FOR PRESS INFORMATION: Thomas Tyrer 310.874.0441 or [email protected]