Excerpt from the OC Register
12/20/09 - Funeral
Authorities believe Wernke was swept away by the creek, when the water
level was between six and eight feet. Wernke's mother, Sheri, told the
Register this week that she thinks her son let the dog off the leash and
had to get in the creek to rescue the dog, which might have jumped into
the water.
At the service, many described the
21-year-old as a loving man and dedicated athlete. Wernke was looking
forward to making his debut as a Santa Ana Don in January before
transferring next summer to Cal State Long Beach on an athletic
scholarship.
"He was an absolute perfectionist ... he worked his tail off all the
time for us," said Tim Matz, pitching coach for the college, of the
left-handed Wernke. "He left a footprint on our mound that can't be
wiped off."
Attendees donned baseball jerseys, many
marked with "Wernke" and the number "5," which he wore when he pitched
for Troy High School. Even one of the fathers who led the service put on
a baseball cap to "be in character with all of you," he told mourners.
The closed casket was brought down the aisle
by six pallbearers, Wernke's friends, who dressed in full baseball
uniforms. The body will be taken to Colorado where Sheri, and father Bob
Wernke live.
Family friend Glenn Casterline said during
his eulogy that he aspired to create the loving relationship shared by
the Wernke family with his own children and remembered James for being
"not your average 21-year-old guy."
Wernke's only sibling, older sister
Kristina, said the past week has been a nightmare and that she is
struggling to come to terms with the loss.
"Somebody explained to me that heaven needed
a really good leftie on their baseball team," she said, while trying to
keep her composure. "I can appreciate that. Who am I to say no?"
As the service came to a close, mourners
belted out "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." Bob Wernke stood near his
son's casket as the crowd sang, and at one point he broke down in tears
and rested his head on the casket.
After the song, Bob Wernke compared the
death to a starting pitcher being relieved from the mound after pitching
a stellar game.
Telling the priest that for at least this
moment church decorum would have to be excused, he asked that everyone
give a standing ovation to his son as the casket made its way back up
the aisle.
Not a single person stopped clapping until
the body was returned to the hearse.
