Strangers, until they were bonded by grief. These two Ventura County moms have struck up an extraordinary friendship – supporting each other through the loss of their children, in tragic circumstances.
"She's been the only person who has been able to make me feel any better about the situation, she's been very supportive," said Kelly Welling, the mother of Wesley Welling, the 15-year-old Westlake High School student who was knocked down and killed in April, when he was waiting at a bus stop.
The driver of the vehicle, Austin Eis, faces charges including murder. He's not entered a plea. She’s at Van Nuys Courthouse, but not for that case. She at the court to support her new friend.
Kelly Welling is talking about Nancy Iskander. The two moms have formed a friendship through the saddest of circumstances. Iskander lost two of her sons, Mark and Jacob, when they were crossing in a marked pedestrian crosswalk in Westlake Village in September 2020.
Welling remembers her son as someone who "cared a lot about justice."
"Our situations are similar but different, so I wanted to be here to support her," said Welling.
The driver of the vehicle which struck and killed Mark and Jacob, who were 9 and 11 at the time, Rebecca Grossman, faces charges including murder. She's plead not guilty. It’s been a three-year-long legal battle. Last week, Rebecca Grossman’s attempt to have her blood work excluded from the evidence presented at trial failed, and Iskander says the socialite's apparent lack of remorse has compounded her grief.
"I feel every mom who loses a child deserves closure," said Iskander. "At least I need to have to stop having to come to court and be able to take care of myself and my surviving children, especially my broken child who saw both his brothers die before his very eyes."
It’s a grief that no parent should ever have to go through, but who could possibly understand the sorrow she is going through more than Nancy, says Welling.
"It's been hard the last couple of weeks. Initially we had court and I was planning the funeral so i was busy in that regard so I was able to keep myself busy and not think too much about being sad," said Welling.
"Nancy's helped quite a bit. I've had a lot of guilt about him being at the bus stop and not picking him up that day, and Nancy has helped with the guilt," she told KCLU.
It’s a bond that came through tragedy, and offers them comfort in their fight for justice for their sons.
"I'm ready to see justice served and hopefully she [Iskander] doesn't have to wait much longer for justice," said Welling.
