As thousands took to Turlock over the last two weeks for the 2025 Stanislaus County Fair, the absence of a family that was incredibly dedicated to the community and especially its agricultural activities was heavily felt by several attendees. That included members of the Pitman High School FFA chapter.
It’s been just over seven months since the Lourencos were on their way to church service on Dec. 15, 2024 when their vehicle was struck. The crash took the lives of four family members — Jennifer Lynn Lourenco, 45, husband Daniel Lourenco, 44, daughter Madelynn, 16, and son Matthew, 14. The only survivor was 18-year-old daughter Emma.
As part of the long healing process was a project that made its way to the fair and took the top prize in one of the Ag Mechanics competitions. It’s a custom bench created by Chrys Kamesch, a recently-graduated Pitman student who was classmates and family friends with members of the Lourenco family.
“I joined Pitman FFA in my sophomore year, which is where I met my friend group, including Emma, and we’re such a close knit group,” Kamesch said. “We’d be at the Lourenco house all the time to hang out… I remember the last time we all hung out together before the tragedy, and after it happened, it was pretty hard on all of us.
“It affected me pretty hard, and I even missed some time at school as I was trying to process it. And when I came back it was pretty emotional. But this idea of honoring their memory really happened in mid-January.”
Angela Freeman, principal of Pitman High last school year, pitched the idea of a memorial bench to members of the campus community, an idea she credits to community member Katie Placido.
At that time, Kamesch had several conversations with Isaac Madruga, a rising senior this year at Pitman and a cousin of the Lourenco siblings, about what would be featured on the bench to uniquely honor each member of the family. The finished product features the names of each family member that passed away, with images that Kamesch, Madruga and other friends felt best represented their passions.
“It was actually going to be a concrete bench, which would have cost a lot more,” said Pitman FFA advisor Trenton Kemps. “But I had just purchased this blank bench file, and I let everybody know that this could be an option and it could save a lot of money. It was just the perfect opportunity for Chrys.”
Kamesch used a MIG (Metal Inert Gas) welding machine throughout the project, as well as a grinder with both grinding and biffing discs to mold and add support to the mild steel bench, which is estimated to weigh around 150 pounds. An oxy-fuel torch also came in handy to clean up any flaws.
After designing graphics for each of the family members, Kamesch used a CNC (computer numerical control) plasma cutter to apply them to the mild steel bench, as well as the FFA logo and “The Lourencos” across the top, hanging over the four names and accompanying designs.
For Daniel, there is a computer to represent his work as an IT and cybersecurity technician after studying computer science at Stanislaus State and Modesto Junior College. Jennifer’s name is accompanied with an apple with “ABC” in the middle of it as an ode to her work as a special needs teacher at Sinclear Elementary in Ceres. Madelynn’s name is above a paw print within a heart to show her love of animals and her dedication to FFA. Matthew’s symbol is a soccer ball and running shoes, representing his love of sports and participation in the Pride’s soccer and cross country programs.
At the center is the FFA emblem, an intricate design that took significant amount of time to translate onto the CNC plasma cutter. The base of the seating area is complimented with plasma-cut leaves and the term “In Loving Memory.”
It was a tall task for Kamesch, 18, who had only shown animals and taken basic engineering classes with Pitman FFA up to this year and was eager to complete the Agriculture and Natural Resources pathways as part of Turlock Unified School District’s Career Technical Education program.
“My junior year, I took Ag Engineering, which is like the basics, like plumbing, electricity, woodworking, and it was so much fun,” said Kamesch. “So I decided, it was my senior year already, and I wanted to complete the pathway, and I didn't have much time, so I decided to do the Welding 1 and Welding Fabrication classes together.”
The Welding 1 course primarily consisted of learning terms, equipment and lots of photos and videos — an introductory course that was minimally hands off. The fabrication class was all about hands-on work, with several of the students enrolled already focused and on their way to completing projects in time for the fair.
“I'm completely new to all this welding and fabrication stuff. Mr. Kemps knew that I was new, but he allowed me in the class and really let me take off with the project. He had a lot of confidence in me for whatever reason,” Kamesch joked.
“I already knew that Chrys had all those skills: being responsible, time management, the work ethic is a big one with these students nowadays.” Kemps said. “We had a conversation, and after that, I was like, ‘You know what? Let's do it.’ And through the year, Chrys just excelled through the program, with his welding skills, all the assignments were just done phenomenally, to the T every single time.”
After offering to create the bench in the Pitman FFA metal shop, Kemps’ mind instantly went to Kamesch.
“I had talks with Mrs. Freeman and other staff about us going it in the shop and our program donating the materials for it, which would save a lot of money, because the concrete bench would have been around $2,600. So I gave them a quick, hand-drawn rendering, and we got the green light,” Kemps explained. “When we got the green light on that, that’s when I kind of started fumbling, asking who I could ask to do such a big project like this. I couldn’t stop going back to Chrys, who had just excelled in the program and more than proven his capabilities.
“Chrys mentioned it to me too later, but it turned out to be a great avenue for expression and to work through that loss. And what a phenomenal job.”
Kamesch described the bench as his “first big project.”
“At the time the idea was being thrown around, all I was doing was practicing in the shop,” Kamesch said. “I didn't really do any other projects before this one, and that's why it took me so long, because I was new, and I did pretty much all of it by myself. Don't get me wrong, like I had some people help me, like my classmates, but for the most part, I did it on my own, and it was pretty difficult. But looking back on it, I'm glad that I was the one that got to do it.”
Kamesch credited friends Madruga, Rylee Ramos, Alia Galvan, Andrea Perez and Neveah Russo for their support over the last few months.
And of course, there is Emma, who is back on her feet following the crash and paid a visit to the fair to support her friends as they competed at shows and showcased their projects, including the bench.
At Tuesday’s goat show, a custom belt buckle was awarded to the grand champion. Designed and sponsored by another Pitman FFA family, the LoFortis, alongside Ramos, the buckle features an image of a goat with an engraved statement: “In Memory of the Lourenco Family.”
Madelynn and Matthew were each planning on showing goats at the fair this year.
“Losing a student is something educators never want to go through. To lose two students and their parents is still unimaginable,” said Freeman. “The Lourencos will always hold a special place with the Pitman Pride. I will forever be saddened by this tragedy. However, I am beyond proud of the response from the community, students, staff, and families for coming together to remember, honor, and pay their respects to Madelynn, Matthew, Jennifer, and Daniel.
“The bench is something that will forever keep the Lourencos in our hearts and support Emma as she continues moving forward with her life.”
Moving forward, there are plans to continue honoring and celebrating the Lourenco family.
The bench will continue to be modified, and the expectation is for it to be placed on the Pitman campus overseeing part of the campus, at the entrance of the agriculture department between the D-wing and the performing arts C-wing. Kemps shared that they plan to plant tulips around the bench, and possibly purchase a favorite tree of Emma's to serve as a backdrop.
“Yes, it will be close to our building where they spent a lot of time, but they made an impact outside of FFA. So many people all across campus were touched by the family, so it’ll be nice to have the bench in a spot where everybody can see it and cherish it,” Kemps said. “You don’t always realize how beloved they were until you see the donations, the messages, and then the funeral.”
The funeral service was on Dec. 27, with over 2,000 family and community members in attendance at Our Lady of Assumption in Turlock, the church that the Lourenco family was traveling to when the tragedy happened.
“The church was so full, every seat in there, even upstairs, was full and you had a couple hundred people standing inside. There was a live stream in the nearby hall, and that was full, and there were hundreds more people outside each building,” Kemps said. “That shows you how beloved this family was to their community, how much of an impact they had.”
As for the money that was almost immediately donated for the initially-planned concrete bench, it will be put towards scholarships.
“When we reached out to our staff to donate money to build the bench, there was an unwavering contribution, so much that money left over has been put into a scholarship account to be given to one of Madelynn’s and Matthew’s classmates during their senior year,” Freeman shared.
Kamesch hopes to return to Turlock to see the bench be unveiled on the Pitman campus and reconnect with others who have been impacted by the tragic events last winter. And he hopes to do so in uniform, as he left this week to begin his journey in the United States Naval Academy, where he hopes to apply the skills learned in the Pitman FFA program to a career as a mechanic.
“I'm not just doing aviation mechanics, I'll be doing automotive stuff with gas and diesel engines, auto body work, a bit of everything,” Kamesch said. “I feel like this project is the closest thing that I've gotten to that work, so I'm super excited. And when I have time, I want to come back with my uniform and take an updated picture with that bench, when the paint is shining even more and the flowers are blooming. I’m looking forward to that.”
