Children’s Memorial in Rusch Park gets digital update

By Sara Beth Williams–
A smartphone QR code with archived information on the tragic deaths of two children in 1964 has been adhered to the Children’s Memorial monument at Rusch Park.

The lone monument stands encased in stone at the entrance to the playground near the softball fields at Rusch Community Park, with a plaque that reads: “This playground memorial is dedicated in memory of those children who have met with untimely tragedy. ‘Grieve not for they rest in Heaven.’”

Recently, Tracy Ferris, who has spent nearly two years reviving awareness of the unsolved death of 7-year-old Jimmy Gaul, received permission to adhere a QR code containing historical information regarding the deaths of Gaul and 5-year-old Linda Huebler, who both passed within weeks of each other. The QR Code, which is embedded in a red clay heart, was adhered to the corner of the children’s memorial on Aug. 8, 2024.

Ferris said the purpose of the historical information within the QR code is to inform the public of the original intended purpose of the children’s memorial. Ferris said gathering the information and paying for the clay heart was a “community effort” on the part of those who grew up in the same neighborhood as Gaul.

Viewers can now scan the QR code with a smartphone camera, click on a link, and have instant access to historical information regarding the death of the two children, including photos of archived articles from the Sacramento Bee and The Press-Tribune, video links to recent local news reports, and links to true crime podcast episodes related to the Gaul cold case.

In May of 1964, 7-year-old Gaul was killed, and his slayer has never been apprehended. The story of Gaul’s murder was published all over the state, from the Chico Enterprise-Record to The Hanford Sentinel.

According to an archived article in The Press-Tribune, Huebler was accidentally struck and killed by a truck while playing in her front yard. While her tragedy was not nearly as publicized or well known, her death, along with Gaul’s, prompted the entire Citrus Heights community to come together.

After Huebler’s death, three family friends established the Citrus Heights Children’s Memorial Fund with the purpose of creating a “living memorial for the children.” The Children’s Memorial Fund was a volunteer-based standing committee with the Citrus Heights Chamber of Commerce at the time.

In 1977, an article in The Sacramento Bee announced the dedication of the children’s memorial monument, which was dedicated during the 14th annual Citrus Heights Children Memorial observance.