Kern County CA Archives Obituaries.....Detjen, Alyx Andria January 12, 2006 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ca/cafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: K T bluewolf@onemain.com February 1, 2006, 11:45 pm The Tehachapi News Alyx Andria Detjen Dec. 3, 1994 – Jan. 12, 2006 A memorial service was held Saturday, Jan. 21, 2006 at the Bear Valley Springs Church for Alyx Andria Detjen, 11. Our blessing from the Lord went home to be with Him on Jan. 12, 2006. Alyx Detjen, I love you. From Poppy — we all love you. I remember how you were so serious when you were small until you were about one year old and your beautiful smile came out. You were our “sweet pea,” later shortened to “peep.” I loved to hear you talk, especially when you would say “D,” then whatever you were trying to say would come out like “shooba loba liba.” I miss you so much! I remember you posing with your first fish. Actually, brother Michael or I caught it and you were still bundled up sitting in your carseat with it. I love you. I loved to watch you at the beach. You would have a new friend in five minutes and would make castles and play with sand crabs for hours. You had an equal love for the snow. You couldn't watch it, you had to be in it. When you told me a month ago that you were ready to snowboard, I was so happy, but knew that I had to start working out to be able to keep up with your competitive spirit. I love to watch you swim. That was your sport, Peep. You loved swimming on the Tehachapi Barracuda’s swim team. You had so much potential. You were so smart and did so well in school. You amazed me. Mom and Heritage Oak School taught you well. I remember helping you with your Bible verses and I can still hear you saying Psalms 119:9 through 16. You amazed me with your knowledge of the Bible and I was looking forward to the days when you would be learning Greek in the seventh and eighth grades so you would help me in my understanding of the word. You were already learning Latin, but didn’t get the opportunity to sing the song for me in Latin that you were learning. You impressed me with all of the words and phrases and, I thought, “you are only 10.” You hadn’t even turned 11 yet. I was looking forward to how God was going to use you as a teacher, doctor, senator, ambassador or missionary. And I realized your mission was to teach Mom about love and the Lord. She would not have known a mother’s true love without you and I would not have known a father’s love and Our Father’s love, without you. Your older sister, Leyla, learned greater love through you. Your older brother, Michael, learned greater love through you also. Everyone who knew you learned of God’s love. I can’t wait to see you in heaven. And I know that the only way others will see you again is if they believe in your Lord and Savior, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I live for that day and look forward to any jelly bean that you may give me. Love, Poppy. Alyx is survived by her parents, Dale and Carolyn Detjen of Bear Valley Springs; sister, Leyla Detjen-Bahr of Orange County; brother, Michael Detjen of Temecula; grandparents, Walter and Patricia Detjen of Lancaster; and Richard and Patricia Walz of Idaho; niece, Celine Detjen; nephews, Chandler Detjen-Bahr and Haiden Detjen-Schaffer; aunts, Joan Hee and her husband Darren; Jennifer Detjen; Chris Davenport and her husband Ron; uncle, Joel Detjen and his wife Kelly; and cousins, Megan, Kelly Ann, Danielle, Carly, Jay and Geneva. Dr. Jeff Kaplan officiated at the service. Interment took place at the Tehachapi Public Cemetery, Eastside. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be made to Heritage Oak School, 20915 Schout Road, Tehachapi CA 93561. Wood Family Funeral Service handled the arrangements. ***** January 25, 2006 Section: A Section Page: A1 Girl's self-strangulation death stunner for small community STEPHANIE TAVARES, Californian staff writer Bear Valley Springs police Sgt. David Wattsmade an emotional plea Tuesday to parents: Warn your children about self-strangulation before you lose them. The public statements came more than a week after Alyx Andria Detjen, a Bear Valley Springs 11-year-old, was found dead in her bedroom of apparent asphyxiation from playing a deadly game known locally as the "choking game." According to Kern County chief deputy coroner Jim Malouf, the girl's mother found her hanging from a bed rail by a scarf the morning of Jan. 12. Investigators believe the girl was playing a popular but dangerous game called the "choking game" or the "pass-out game." The object of the game is to cut off the oxygen and blood flow to the brain for a few minutes, until the person feels a dizzy euphoria and passes out. It is most commonly played in small groups, although Alyx was alone when she died, Watts said. The death has sent shock waves through the small mountain community. Bear Valley resident Carol Newell said she didn't know the family, but heard about the girl's death in church last Sunday. She said people have been very upset about it. "My immediate reaction was shock," she said. "I had a similar experience with a rental inCoeur d'Alene, Idaho, with an 18-year-old who asphyxiated himself in the closet. I'm quite alarmed, frankly, about the condition of the whole country, not just this community. It's a pervasive problem and there's very little publicity." While Alyx's is the first such death in Kern County, it's not uncommon nationwide. Experts estimate as many as 750 American children and teens die each year after playing some form of the game. Many of those deaths go unnoticed by the broader community because coroners often label them suicides or accidental deaths, said Dan Baldwin, the publisher of The Teen Choking Game, an online newsletter about the dangers of the game. The game itself is nothing new. It's been played by Americans for generations. What's different now is the quickness with which young children learn about it, said Deanna Cloud, the children's system administrator for the Kern County Mental Health Department. "This kind of game, where friends try to help or individuals do it, it's gone on for a long time," Cloud said. "I'm betting, though, with more frequent access to computers and chat rooms that spreads the word more quickly than when we were younger. That may make it more common because of the way information is shared." Sgt. Watts said it was clear during his investigation that Alyx's death was an accident, but that it took talking to kids in the area before he could piece together what happened. He said some of the kids she knew admitted to having played the game or talked about it in the past. "It's very likely that she was exposed to this in some degree through these means," he said. It's an incident that cut close to Watts' heart. His daughter and Alyx were born just four days apart, and he knows it could just as easily been his daughter. "This was one of those investigations that reaches you to the core," Watts said. "I'd be a liar if I didn't say it affected me deeply. It's difficult not to shed a tear along with those who suffered the loss. "I can't even put into words what that type of loss would do to me." Alyx Andria Detjen January 26, 2006 Section: A Section Page: A1 A DEADLY 'GAME' ERIN WALDNER, Californian staff writer Craig Bauer knew 11-year old Alyx Detjen since she was in preschool. "She was full of life. She was a popular kid, a good student," said Bauer, an administrator at Country Oaks Baptist Church in Tehachapi. Alyx was a fifth- grade student at Heritage Oak School, which is housed at the church. The school, with 75 students, is reeling from the news on Tuesday that Alyx was apparently playing a "choking game" when she died as a result of asphyxiation. Bauer, speaking as a parent at the school, not as a church spokesman, said he believes the young girl's death was accidental. He said her classmates have told him she enjoyed practical jokes. Alyx's mother found her in her bedroom, hanging from a bed rail by a scarf, on Jan. 12, according to Kern County chief deputy coroner Jim Malouf. The purpose of the "choking game" is to achieve a high by cutting off the oxygen and blood flow to someone's brain. Investigators have said they believe Alyx was playing the game by herself. Kayla Bichsel, a ninth-grader at HeritageOak School,said Wednesday that she had never heard of the game prior to Tuesday's news. Her sister, junior Christa Bichsel, said later that she read about the game earlier this winter in a magazine but that she wasn't aware of any of her classmates playing it. Pastor Andy Walker from the church said he interviewed Alyx's classmates after the incident to find out if the choking game was being played among students at the school. He said none of them were familiar with it, and he believes they were being straight with him. Investigators have said that some of the children Alyx knew conceded that they played the game or talked about it. Alyx's parents could not be reached for comment. At the Bakersfield Police Activities League on East Fourth Street, an unscientific poll -- gathering all of the children in the room and asking, by a show of hands, if they had ever heard of the choking game -- showed only five of 35 hands. Out of those, only one had heard about it before Tuesday. Alex Gonzalez, 12, "heard about one kid who did it to another kid, and made him go to sleep." He never wanted to play the game himself. "It's not fun because you can die from it," he said. Jessica Mejia, 13, wondered out loud about the game. "I wonder who made this up?" she asked. "It doesn't sound like a 'game.' No winners, but losers." Back in Tehachapi, Alyx was remembered fondly by several people who knew her at Heritage Oak School. "She was a spunky little girl," Christa Bichsel said after school. "She liked to play jokes on people," like handing out Harry Potter jelly beans, which have flavors like vomit and earwax. "She was a teaser," said school administrator Vanessa Cross. "She was outgoing. She loved life," said Lori Gohr, a parent and teacher at the school. Parent Cindi Rayburn described Alyx as sweet and fun, someone who brought a lot of life into the classroom. She said Alyx was filled with energy. She loved to swing on the swing set at recess. Alyx had attended Heritage Oak School since kindergarten, according to administrators. Cross taught Alyx Latin. She said Alyx was a very good student, achieving A's and B's. She also said Alyx loved to talk about her family and that she was athletic. She enjoyed swimming and gymnastics. "She was fun-loving," Cross said. "We're going to miss her, a lot." Walker said he plans to compile resources for parents at the school so they can learn more about the choking game, including what signs to look for in someone who might be playing it. He said parents are in the best position to determine what information their children can handle. Gohr said she and her husband have talked to their third-grade daughter about the dangers of playing the choking game. She said they wanted to be straightforward but they couched what they said. "We don't want to put ideas in her head," she said. "It's a small school, her presence is missed," said Cindi Rayburn of Alyx Andria Detjen, an 11-year-old who attended Heritage Oak School in Tehachapi who apparently died while playing a "choking game." -- Californian staff writer David Burger contributed to this article. HENRY A. BARRIOS / THE CALIFORNIAN Additional Comments: Volunteer submission - No relation to the deceased. No other information available from submitter. http://www.tehachapinews.com/obits.html Volume 106 - No. 42 Feb. 1-7, 2006 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ca/kern/obits/d/detjen1933gob.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/cafiles/ File size: 12.3 Kb