Mary Ann Henderson

On 24 September, 1976, Mary Ann Henderson went to our class’ first football game, which was against San Fernando. She never made it home.

Mary Ann Henderson 1975

At the game, she met a boy who after the game, took her to the Agricultural area on campus where he raped and murdered her.

Mary Ann Henderson - Art Club - Sequoia

Mary Ann’s death had a great effect on us. Losing someone of our own age — and so terribly —  was devastating. It was especially painful to her friends who knew her at Sequoia and enjoyed being in art classes and working on the yearbook with her. Her memory will live on in the hearts of everyone who knew her and were touched by her loss.

Mary Ann Henderson Memorial Portrait
Portrait Copyright © 1977, Barbara Erickson

We remember Mary Ann Henderson and all of our other classmates who are no longer with us.

Mary Ann Henderson's Memorial Marker

Read more about Mary Ann Henderson and her impact on us.

7 comments

  1. […] We all go through the same experiences. The regimented school day from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm that starts with the Pledge of Allegiance (another strange American cultural phenomenon), followed by morning announcements and a bell schedule. We go to the same classes, attend the same assemblies, and struggle through the same homework and tests. We may join clubs, activities, or sports where we build camaraderie with other students that get strengthened when we play teams from other schools. We experience first loves and first heartbreaks. We share triumphs and defeats. In the case of when I went to high school, we also shared a terrible tragedy. […]