A day after the wife of a rock climber from the Palmdale area spoke about mourning her husband following his fatal from Yosemite’s iconic El Capitan, students celebrated Tim Klein’s legacy at the Palmdale high school where was a teacher.
“I know that he was very careful and it’s just unfortunate that it happened,” former student Haydi Castillo said Monday before the vigil at Palmdale High School. “But it makes me feel a little bit at ease knowing he died doing something he loved to do.”
Recently, Klein was named Antelope Valley Union High School District’s teacher of the year for the second time.
Klein, 42, and his friend Jason Wells, 46, of Boulder, Colorado, were identified as the two climbers who fell to their some 1,000 feet to their deaths on Saturday.
Multiple 911 calls reported two climbers had fallen around around 8:15 a.m., according to a statement from Yosemite National Park.
The investigation is ongoing, officials said, and no further details were available. It remains unclear what caused the two climbers — who were extremely experienced and had summited the granite monolith many times — to fall.
On Sunday, Klein’s wife spoke about her husband’s role in his community.
“I know that he was well loved and made a huge impact in people’s lives,” Jennifer Klein told KTLA.
She added her husband and Wells loved to climb together.
“They loved each other like brothers,” she said.
Tim Klein leaves behind two children. A GoFundMe page to help his family with funeral expenses was set up.
“I would say this is the hardest thing anyone would ever have to endure except for that of losing a parent, like my boys,” Jennifer Klein said.
At the vigil on Monday, a large group of people came to pay their respects.
“He was very passionate about every single student,” former student Daian Lopez said.
