After failing to attend his father’s birthday celebration, Laguna alumnus Mark Romasanta was reported missing by his family on Sunday, Aug. 28.
Mark’s body was found in the ocean off Campus Point the next day.
Mark’s parents, Mark Sr. and Marie, and his younger sister Angelina held a memorial service for Mark at the Unitarian Church on Sept. 6.
Several members of the Laguna community attended the memorial, including librarian Mrs. Sue Burke.
“I raised him up through Laguna.  I started with Mark in second grade library class.”
History teacher Ms. Martha Elliott  remembers the time she shared with Mark at Laguna.
“He was always thinking about somebody else.  He had a big heart and he really cared about his friends. He was always there for them.”
Mark graduated from Laguna in 2007. He was beginning his senior year at UCSB where he was pursuing a major in aquatic biology.
In honor of his love of the ocean, a surfboard was placed at the front of the church throughout the service.
The Madrigals, Santa Barbara High School’s   choral group, sang two songs at the service: an Irish prayer, and “Imagine” by former Beatle member John Lennon.
“I do not think there was a dry eye in the place when they sang ‘Imagine.’ I will never be able to listen to that song again without thinking of Mark,” Ms. Elliott said.