It is with great sadness that we relive the events of October 30, 2009, when a 16-year old Woodrow Wilson High School student was killed by a single stray bullet as she sat with friends shortly after attending her high school’s Homecoming football game. It is also important that we honor her memory as a warm and bright Long Beach native whose death forces us to seize an opportunity to confront one of the greatest challenges in Long Beach—gang violence.
For inspiring us in a direction of service, action and greatness to overcome this challenge and to come together to find the solutions necessary to do so, and for never forgetting that one person—in tragedy or triumph—can change our community and our world, the lbpost.com honors Melody Ross for everything her life and the impact it had and will continue to have on our community as The 2009 Long Beach Person of the Year.
Of course, Melody did not ask that her legacy be the bearer of this task. But as we began to learn details about her life, and the truly senseless nature of the crime in which it was lost, it became clear that hers was a death that could not and should not be tolerated. Our community banded together and demanded answers as we learned more about Melody’s life. We felt like we had known her, and we felt like we had all lost her.
So we identified with her parents, Chantha and Vanareth, refugees of Cambodia who—like so many in Long Beach—fled from mass killings in their native country to find a new life, a better life. We learned of their struggles and their triumphs, and felt their crushing loss. We cried with them when police announced two arrests, we joined them on Pine Avenue to raise money for their expenses, and we mourned with them at Melody’s funeral.
The Ross family took every opportunity that was afforded to them, and they made the most of it. They left for a better life when the opportunity arose. They settled in Long Beach for the opportunity to be housed and employed, and for their children to be educated. Their daughter, Melody, took advantage of every opportunity she was given—excelling in school, joining the track team, living life to the fullest.
But Melody Ross, daughter of Cambodian refugees, an honor roll student destined for a full life, taking full advantage of the opportunities presented to her, was struck down by an issue that is older than she is—an issue that has plagued Long Beach for years. The argument always being that gang violence only affects those who choose a certain way of life and is therefore more acceptable—or maybe, more easy to ignore. Either way, the loss of Melody Ross changed that.
There are certain truths about the tragic death of Melody Ross that cannot be forgotten, and perhaps explain quite a bit about the community’s outraged reaction. As much as we rallied around the Ross family because we learned of the exemplary person that we had lost, her death perhaps brought gang violence a little too close to home.
Of 29 fatal shootings in Long Beach in 2009, the shooting that killed Melody Ross was geographically the easternmost incident of them all. Of the 33 lives that were taken in those shooting incidents, Melody was one of just two females and just one of eight victims under the age of 18. It was the perfect storm of variables to spark community outrage; an innocent, 16-year old female fatally shot in an area of Long Beach where fatal shootings do not normally occur.
The community stood up and demanded answers, demanded arrests, which they got just five days after Melody’s death. The top-notch Long Beach Police Department announced that officers had been drawn in from outside units to assist in the investigation, that many hours of overtime had been accumulated, that there would be no rest until arrests were made and now they had. It was truly a great example of police-work, and police explained that many officers felt emotionally attached to the crime and pushed themselves to work around the clock in pursuit of those who caused the tragedy.
As of this writing, 12 arrests have been made in connection with nine fatal shootings out of a total 29 that occurred in Long Beach in 2009. Each suspect arrested is pending trial as of this writing. And each shooting has been determined to have been gang-related.
The sad truth is that Melody Ross was not the only person to die by gunfire this year. She was, in fact, one of many. We will never know what Melody would have accomplished had she been allowed to fully live her life. We will also never know what 18-year old Kollin Neal would have done with his life, or what 15-year old Ezra Davis would have done with his.
Jacob Benavidez was 15.
Pablo Marquez was 18.
Melody Ross truly had inspired everyone who knew her in life, and in death she has brought many more together to stand up against gang violence. Police officers worked around the clock, but it was public outrage that made those two arrests. It was the community that would not accept the possibility of letting killers run free. It was the strength and the emotion and the bond of Long Beach that cracked that case.
The opportunities that Melody Ross took advantage of in life are what made her death so difficult for us to stomach. We knew her. She was us. And we would not be silent in her sudden absence.
But what will we do now? We must believe that as a community we can and we will overcome the greatest challenge which now confronts us. We know we are armed with the capacity to bring any killer to justice. We have proven as a community we can band together to achieve results.
Melody Ross put the power back in our hands. This advantage is her legacy.
It is now up to us to take advantage of the opportunity.
CBS2 News Coverage
Click here to view the recent CBS2 News coverage of our Person of the Year.
Student Safety & Scholarship Fund in Memory of Melody Ross
The Long Beach Unified School District Education Foundation recently created the Student Safety & Scholarship Fund in Memory of Melody Ross established to receive donor funds for a) student and school safety programs that may include but not be limited to grief counseling, purchase of student and school safety equipment, community forums on student and school safety, and other items not yet identified pertaining to student safety; b) scholarships for post-secondary education and training opportunities for students who, through their high school experiences, have demonstrated characteristics that exemplify Melody Ross’ characteristics and life message of 1) loving school, 2) respecting parents, and 3) respecting and loving one another; and c) assistance to families of Long Beach students who have suffered through tragedies.
You may make a donation to the Student Safety & Scholarship Fund in Memory of Melody Ross via check or credit card.
Checks may be made out to the Long Beach Education Foundation. A note in the memo line should read: Student Safety & Scholarship Fund in Memory of Melody Ross. Checks should be sent to:
Long Beach Education Foundation
1515 Hughes Way
Long Beach, CA 90810
Click here if you would like to make a secure online credit card donation to the Student Safety & Scholarship Fund in Memory of Melody Ross.
Previous Person of the Year Recipients
2008: Misty May-Treanor, Olympic Volleyball Athlete
2007: Justin Rudd, Belmont Shore Community Activist