Hundreds gather in Va. to mourn victims of D.C. air disaster with Johnstown ties

Yahoo

09-02-2025

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Nearly 1,500 people gathered Friday in Leesburg, Virginia, to honor the lives of a family with Johnstown-area ties who died last Wednesday in a midair collision near Washington, D.C.
Donna (Smojice) Livingston, 48, originally of Westmont; her husband, Peter, 48; and their daughters Everly, 14, and Alydia, 11, were passengers on American Eagle Flight 5342 when it collided with an Army helicopter near Ronald Reagan National Airport, killing all 67 people aboard both aircraft.
The Livingstons were returning to their home in Virginia from Wichita, Kansas, where the girls had attended a national development camp for promising young ice skaters held after the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
When the girls were very young, Peter, a hockey enthusiast, made an ice rink in the backyard to teach them how to skate, the family's obituary said.
'It was the first of what became an annually constructed backyard rink, and the birth of Everly and Alydia's primary passion: figure skating,' the obituary said. 'The girls skated at the Ashburn Ice House and were members of the Washington Figure Skating Club, competing all over the country. ... It was the girls' dream to skate in the Olympics one day. Then there are goals shared by us all – to leave this earth surrounded by those we love, having lived a life full of passion. Both goals are achieved by few. The Livingstons fulfilled the hardest one.'
A celebration of life was held for the Livingston family Friday morning at Cornerstone Chapel in Leesburg. Friends from the Johnstown area including Bob Heffelfinger attended.
'Close to 1,500 people attended,' Heffelfinger said in a text message Friday night.
The procession was led by the Loudoun County Sheriff's Department.
'There was an outpouring from the sheriff's department,' Heffelfinger said. 'They closed every street and intersection.'
Donna Livingston is survived by her mother Mary Smojice, brother Mark Smojice, and niece and nephew Maddy and Brody Smojice, and was preceded in death by her father, William Smojice, the family's obituary read.
The family's bodies were recovered from the river and cremated. A spring interment at Grandview Cemetery in the Johnstown area is intended, Heffelfinger said.
Donna graduated from Westmont Hilltop High School in 1995 and completed her college education at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1999.
'Highly driven and ambitious, she went on to work in marketing for Discovery Communications and AOL before landing at Comcast where she excelled over the last 16 years,' the obituary read. 'Donna's infectious energy extended beyond her career as a beloved friend and dedicated skating mom and wife.'
Peter worked as a Realtor with Keller Williams, where he was recognized by the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors as a top producer for multiple years. Peter and Donna met in 2006 and were married in 2009.
"Peter was best known for his love and dedication to his wife and daughters, joyfully leading the charge behind the scenes to support their endeavors,' the obituary said. 'It wasn't that Peter couldn't say no to his girls, he was just delighted to say 'yes'.'