Friends and family remembered Daisy Johnson as a talented singer and fearless performer, with an outgoing, bubbly energy that lit up every room at her memorial service in Torrance on Monday.
The 19 year old LBCC student and “In The Heights” star died on April 21.
Pastor Mike Dsane gives the closing remarks ensuring that the Johnson family be cared for in their time of grief at the memorial for Daisy Johnson at King’s Harbor Church on Monday. (Ryan Hixson)
The entrance of King’s Harbor Church was adorned with a cross on the floor, covered in candles and surrounded by small daisies under a photo of Daisy and her father, Andy.
Attendees dressed in white to symbolize daisy flowers and purity, according to Andy.
“You know, the most common thing we hear is that there are no words. And it’s true. There are no words. It’s a nightmare,” Candi Johnson, Daisy’s grandmother, said.
Andy wore Daisy’s Pittsburgh hat to show his affection for his daughter.
Andy Johnson, the father of Daisy speaks at her memorial while wearing her baseball cap on Monday at King’s Harbor Church. (Nick Eismann)
“She started singing around age three. We took her to ‘America’s Got Talent,’ she didn’t make it, but we knew she was going places,” Andy said.
Andy continued about Daisy’s singing as a child, adding, “She was the National Anthem queen. When she was in fourth or fifth grade, she sang it at the local high school when we lived in Pennsylvania.”
As seats started to fill in, many of the attendees exchanged stories about Daisy.
“When I heard she had passed, I literally had to sit down at my desk. I was gonna pass out. I work at a high school, and we hear about lots of kids dying. But this one hit differently,” Jackie Lopez, an office assistant from the Humanities and Arts Academy, a school Daisy attended, said.
The service opened with Pastor Mike Dsane introducing the song “Forever Young” by Rod Stewart, one of Daisy’s favorite songs.
“Pastor Mike has been our rock. He was great about helping us organize and you know, he reached out,” Wayne Johnson, Daisy’s grandfather, said.
Dsane then led the attendees in a prayer before passing the mic off to Wayne.
Wayne started to tear up as he read Psalm 23 from the Bible.
Four of Daisy’s closest friends mentioned some of their favorite memories when they would get together, referring to these as “Daisy dates.”
Nicolas Morales, a high school friend of Daisy Johnson weeps as friends recount stories and memories of Daisy during the memorial at King’s Harbor Church on Monday. (Nick Eismann)
Tyler Johnson, Daisy’s brother, was the next to speak.
“I’m happy I’m the last person Daisy talked to. I haven’t been born in a world that doesn’t have Daisy. If there’s one thing I regret, it’s not telling her that I love her enough,” Tyler said.
After an anecdote, Daisy’s sister, Fanny Johnson ended her speech beautifully, “The first time I saw her, she had her eyes closed. The last time I saw her, she had her eyes closed.”
Before returning to her seat, Fanny came back to the microphone to add one more message she felt was important.
“All of you are loved,” Fanny said.
After Fanny closed out her speech, Candi took the stage and shared her memories of Daisy.
“The last WhatsApp message I have from Daisy was ‘I love you so much’ followed by three heart emojis,” Candi said.
Candi continued with her stories, mentioning their shared love of journals and the nickname she gave Daisy.
“Daisy Candace Johnson was Daisy May to me,” Candi said.
Andy spoke next, calling back to a line in the song “Forever Young.”
“‘And when you finally fly away, I’ll be hoping that I served you well,’ My Daisy flew away too early,” Andy said.
Andy included a scene from Ted Lasso where he tells his team to believe and have hope.
Andy then played a video of Daisy and Tyler dancing to “Last Christmas” by Wham! while cleaning the kitchen.
Tyler Johnson, Daisy’s brother, is comforted by his father as a video recording plays of Daisy Johnson performing in a musical during her memorial service on Monday. (Nick Eismann)
After Andy finished speaking, Dsane returned to the stage and played “My Redeemer Lives” by Crystal Lewis, followed by a poem from “The Book of Lamentations” and a second poem by A.M. Overton.
“If you’ve ever heard Daisy sing, you know how talented she really was. Here’s one last clip of her,” Dsane said.
Before the end of the service, a video was played of Daisy dressed as Ariel, singing “Part of Your World” from “The Little Mermaid.”
Dsane closed out the ceremony with a prayer and reminded everyone to be kind and to love like Daisy loved.
Pastor Mike Dsane speaks to the large crowd that had arrived to King’s Harbor Church for Daisy Johnson’s memorial on Monday. (Ryan Hixson)