FALLBROOK, Calif. (KGTV) - An Ocean Beach man is remembering two longtime community organizers in the Bay Area, among the four people killed in a crash in Fallbrook last Friday.
“As a couple, their love for each other exuded into the world," said Gary Gartner.
Four days later, Gartner spoke out about his good friends, Peggy Moore and her wife, Hope Wood. Gartner and other friends say the two were among the four killed Friday night on SR-76 near Horse Ranch Creek Road in Fallbrook.
CHP said a Chrysler sedan veered into oncoming traffic, crashing into a Jeep truck. Both drivers were killed.
Moore and Wood, inside the Jeep truck, were also killed, while another passenger suffered life-threatening injuries.
“Disbelief and deep sadness,” said Gartner.
Gartner, a longtime political advisor, said Moore and Wood were longtime community organizers in the Bay Area.
Gartner met Moore in 2014, when both worked for a mayoral campaign in Oakland.
“Peggy, everything was from the heart. She was a hard campaigner. She was tough and knew how to win,” said Gartner. “I met Hope about a year later. She was smart and committed.”
Gartner says Moore and Wood were both dedicated to affecting change and advocated for issues, including LGBT and minority rights.
Gartner says the couple moved to Orange County a few years ago.
He said, according to a family member of Wood, the crash happened last Friday after the couple left a concert in the Jeep truck with two of Wood's family members.
Political leaders, from members of Congress to mayors, have posted tributes to the couple on social media.
“The world has lost two beautiful women who led with their hearts and souls, and touched so many people, and made the world a better place,” said Gartner.
Gartner says Wood's family member remains in critical condition.
The CHP has not yet determined if alcohol or drugs were factors in the crash.
