Thousands of people crowded on the Huntington Beach Pier Saturday in honor of a local woman who lost her life along with Kobe Bryant, his daughter, Gianna, and six other people in a helicopter crash in the hills above Calabasas last weekend.
Christina Mauser, 38, worked as an assistant coach at Bryant’s Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, where Gianna played on the Mamba team. The helicopter was en route to a game in Thousand Oaks when it went down amid foggy conditions.
She was a mother of three and leaves behind a husband. Prior to joining the Mamba Sports Academy, she taught and coached at Orange County schools, including Harbor Day School in Corona del Mar, where Gianna, 13, attended, according to the school.
Also killed in the crash were Orange Coast College baseball coach John Altobelli, 56, his wife Keri Altobelli, 46, their daughter Alyssa Altobelli, 14; Sarah Chester, 45, her daughter Payton Chester, 13; and pilot Ara Zobayan, 50, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner.