One year ago this Thursday... a school bus crash claimed the lives of four kids from Cottonwood, Minnesota.

On February 19th, 2008, a minivan driven by Olga Marina Franco Del Cid, ran a stop sign and slammed into the bus.

Franco was sentenced last October to nearly 13 years in prison.

The youngsters who lost their lives: 13 year old Jesse Javens and his 9 year old brother, Hunter... 9 year old Emilee Olson and twelve-year-old Reed Stevens.

All of them on a bus, following a route they knew as the road home.

In the year since, for all those involved, it has been a road of heartache and grief.

Lives were lost and others forever changed on that February day on State Highway 23 just south of Cottonwood, Minnesota.

A Lakeview school district bus was engaged in it's afternoon routine of taking kids home for the day, when a minivan ran a stop stop on County Road 24, slamming into the bus with such force that it rolled the school bus over onto it's side.

By that night, we knew that Jesse, Hunter, Emilee and Reed had died in the crash: the only thing they had done that day was go to school.

The Minnesota Highway Patrol told us this woman, initially identified as Alianiss Morales, was at the wheel of the minivan at the time of the crash. That name was fake: her true identity was Olga Marina Franco Del Cid. She was in the country illegally.

She told investigators her boyfriend was driving, not she.

The jury in the case didn't believe her and sent her to prison for 12 years.

While the justice system has spoken, it doesn't change the fact that the loved ones of these young kids have a hole in their hearts that will never heal.

An event called "Our Journey of Hope" is set for Thursday at the Lakeview School in Cottonwood. 

During the day, students will work with staff and grief counselors.

There will be a community event following the day's classes. 

KSFY Action News will be there and we'll bring you live reports on action news Live at 5, 6 and 10:00.