Friends mourn teen crash victim

Antonio Rodriguez, 16, of Miramar was remembered Sunday as ''a great kid, with a heart of gold'' by one of many friends who mourned his death in high-speed weekend car crash in Pembroke Pines.

''He always had a smile,'' said Santiago Scort, 16, who met Rodriguez when he and his family moved to South Florida from New Jersey about four years ago.

Rodriguez, an Everglades High School student who would have been a junior this fall, died early Saturday when the car in which he was a passenger veered off the pavement in the 14200 block of Sheridan Street and struck a light pole.

Four other teens in the car were injured. Passenger David Lopez, 18, of Miramar, remained in critical condition Sunday at Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood. Anderson Mora, 15, of Pembroke Pines was in stable condition at the same hospital.

Kamran Hanif, 18, of Miramar, identified by police as the driver of the Toyota sedan, and passenger Edward Theard, 19, were treated and released.

Police said Hanif apparently lost control of the eastbound Toyota and hit the light pole, sending the car into a skid through the wide swale on the south side of the road. Back seat passengers Rodriguez and Lopez were thrown from the car.

Rodriguez was pronounced dead at the scene, just minutes after midnight.

Scort said he and Rodriguez were classmates at Glades Middle School. ''He was never in a bad mood, and always tried to make a joke out of everything,'' said Scort.

Scort and other friends set up a memorial at the scene of crash that includes poster boards with pictures of Rodriguez and tributes to him hand-written in colored markers. Friends who signed themselves Nick, Ivy, Michael C. and Carlos all wrote about how they would miss the teen.

Also in the roadside shrine were flowers, candles, a broken cellphone and cigarette lighters.

A few feet away were two small palm trees ripped from the ground, and the shattered light pole, now surrounded by yellow crime-scene tape.

Rodriguez is survived by his parents, Antonio and Angelica Rodriguez; a sister, Adrina; and his grandparents.

Role of cancer patient emotional for teen actress Sofia Vassilieva

SANTA MONICA, Calif. - Sofia Vassilieva cried uncontrollably the first time she saw herself in the makeup that would transform her into a young woman dying of leukemia for "My Sister's Keeper."

"We were doing the screen test. It was just the beginning of it all. I came back to the trailer and I was hysterical. It is so hard to see yourself like that and envision people going through that," she says during an interview at the Casa del Mar Hotel, where she joined castmates Cameron Diaz and Abigail Breslin to talk about the film version of the best-selling book by Jodi Picoult.

Vassilieva plays Kate, a teen-ager whose long battle with cancer has left her pale and frail. The fight appears to be coming to an end when her sister takes legal action so she no longer has to be used as donor for the ailing sibling.

Playing a character fighting a losing battle with cancer was both physically and mentally challenging for the 16-year-old actress. The toughest scenes were where Kate had to admit she was going to die.

Vassilieva mustered up all her strength to show how Kate was realistically facing the inevitable. Off screen, she would be in tears.

"That was the journey for me. The ridiculous balance of letting go and being scared to my wits end," she says.

Diaz admires the bravery the young actress showed.

"She was 15 when she did it. Think back to when you were 15. The last thing you wanted to do was shave your head and then your eyebrows. That's when you are getting a real sense of who you are. So it was really brave of her," Diaz says. "Sofia's the most tender of tender. Everything is right there on the surface at all times."

Before filming, Vassilieva visited several cancer hospitals, where she found inspiration in the strength and will power of the patients and their families.

Several advisers on the film where teens battling cancer. Vassilieva shared her concern about how this movie would affect those who have gone through such a demanding fight. A teen adviser, Nicole, gave her the advice she needed.

"She told me that I would be telling the story of these people and these families. Don't shy away from hiding it or being overly kind," Vassilieva says.

The role was more than a paycheck for Vassilieva. She's become an honorary ambassador for "Stand Up to Cancer," a charitable program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation.

A gold necklace from the organization hangs around her neck. She plans to continue her support, even when she returns to work in a few months on the sixth season of the television series "Medium."

Local Teen Builds Deck for Bangor Seniors

The folks at Ross Manor have a Bangor teenager to thank for a new deck at their facility.

18 year old Jennifer Leach got the idea for the deck while volunteering at the Bangor senior citizens facility two years ago. She says some residents wanted to spend more time outside.

So, Jennifer started planning the deck to earn her Girl Scout Gold Award. That's the highest award given to girl scouts ages 14 to 18.

She recruited the help of several local businesses and volunteers, and spent dozens of hours getting the work done.

Monday, residents and Jennifer gathered to celebrate. "It's awesome. It's hard to even describe coming back here. It wasn't even finished and they were already putting flowers up on the deck, and it was great to see they were so excited to use something that I had been so excited for for a couple years now."

American Concrete, Aubuchon Hardware, Crescent Lumber and Lane Construction all contributed to the project.

Jennifer was also presented with the Gold Award at the ceremony.