In Loving Memory
Antoinette Raygoza
April 1, 1991 — February 29, 2012 · Santa Maria, California
"She carried light in the way she moved through rooms. That doesn't just disappear."
April 1, 1991 — February 29, 2012 · Santa Maria, California
"She carried light in the way she moved through rooms. That doesn't just disappear."
Antoinette Raygoza was born April 1, 1991, in Santa Maria, California, to Emma Garcia and Anthony Raygoza. She spent her earliest years in Yuma, Arizona, where she attended Otando Elementary School and fell in love with the open desert — four-wheeling with family, long days at the lake, and the two Rottweilers she called her own.
At 13, Antoinette returned to the Central Coast. She enrolled at Tommie Kunst Jr. High, pulled on a jersey for Santa Maria Fast Pitch softball, and finished her schooling at Lompoc High School, Class of 2009.
At the time of her passing she was studying at Allan Hancock College while holding down two jobs — part-time for the City of Santa Maria and full-time for Genesis, serving adults with disabilities. Her mother said Antoinette dreamed of becoming a probation officer; her best friend Taleena Carr said she dreamed of becoming a pediatrician. Both are true. She wanted to help people — she was figuring out exactly how.
She loved the newest pair of Jordans. She loved baking. Her favorite party would have featured white cake with strawberry filling and barbecue chicken with all the fixings. Her best friend called her by the nickname "Beezy," and the two of them took long day trips to Pismo Beach for lunch, drove kids to Waller Park to feed the ducks, and went to the movies whenever the week would allow it.
Her obituary called her "so full of life" — the kind of person who "always made the room so much brighter with her smile." Her aunt Debbie Garcia called her "a daddy's girl." Taleena called her "very family-oriented." Both are true, too.
"She was very family-oriented. She loved kids and she wanted to be a pediatrician." — Taleena Carr, best friend
"She was a daddy's girl." — Debbie Garcia, aunt
"A beautiful young lady is what Antoinette will always be to us. She was shy and quiet as a lil girl, but when she looked at you with those eyes I knew she was loving our company. There will be a void in all our lives without her." — Great Aunt Barbara (Raygoza) Zepeda
"Every time we do something in her memory, we have a huge turnout. That tells you what kind of person she was. She was very, very special to us. I don't want to let my niece be forgotten." — Debbie Garcia, aunt
Held at Church for Life, 3130 Skyway Drive in Santa Maria, on March 8, 2012, at 4:00 PM. Arrangements by Lori Family Mortuary.
More than 50 people gathered at Preisker Park in Santa Maria to mark one year without her.
The family returned to the Lake Terrace area near the duck pond — the same pond Antoinette used to bring kids to feed. A white alder tree was planted in her memory, adorned with purple ribbons and decorations — the color of domestic violence awareness. Present that day: Bear Vázquez, Debbie Garcia, Joseph Vázquez, Justin Mahony, Alyssa, Cain, Julianna Duran, and Taleena Carr.
On the evening of February 28, 2012, Antoinette was killed during a domestic dispute with her boyfriend in the 1600 block of North McClelland Street in Santa Maria. She passed away the next day — February 29, a leap year day — with her mother at her side.
At sentencing, her mother Emma Garcia vowed to promote domestic violence awareness in her daughter's memory. That promise is why the memory tree at Waller Park is dressed in purple, and why this section of her page exists.
Her aunt Debbie Garcia — Deborah Mahony — still lives in Santa Maria. Her cousin Mark "Bear" Vázquez founded My Legacy Continues in 2026. This page is part of why.
Antoinette wanted to help people. She was working two jobs and studying at Allan Hancock to figure out exactly how. That intention did not disappear when she did. It moved to the people who loved her. It moved to a younger cousin who decided that no family should lose their stories again.
She wanted to help people. Her family is still finding the ways.
Antoinette's story is preserved here from public record. Her obituary lives on the Santa Maria Times / Legacy.com. Her case — People v. Jack Misiaszek — is documented in Santa Maria Superior Court records, sentencing February 2013, Judge Edward Bullard presiding. Jack Misiaszek received 10 years 10 months for vehicular manslaughter with gang allegation and attempted carjacking.
Preserved by My Legacy Continues. Sourced from public obituaries, court records, and family testimony from her father Anthony, aunt Debbie Garcia, and best friend Taleena Carr. The purple domestic violence ribbon on this page comes from her family's own courtroom tribute. If you are family and want to add a memory, photo, or correction, email contact@mylegacycontinues.com.
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