Family back home, but without Kali

Members of a Utah family who apparently lost a 15-year-old girl in the Asian tsunami have returned home and are slowly returning to the rhythms of their everyday lives.

The body of Kali Breisch, however, did not return home with her father, brother and sister. The family had not found it, family friend Charlene Edmunds said.

Last week, the family found the Skyline High School sophomore's picture on a board outside a morgue in Thailand among other faces of unidentified victims of a huge tsunami.

An identifying number was tagged to the picture; the Breisch family, armed with that number, went to claim Kali's body.

"When they brought the body out that had that number on it, it was not Kali," Edmunds said.

The family remains hopeful they will soon bring Kali home. They're on to some solid leads, Edmunds said.

It is believed that Kali was swept away by the tsunami on Dec. 26. Kali and her brother Jai were in a bungalow on the beach in Khao Lak, Thailand, where the family was vacationing.

A wave threw Jai into a tree and he was injured. The family hasn't seen Kali since.

Back in Utah, each member of the Breisch family is preparing to move forward.

Kali's older sister Shonti, 18, plans to return to college this semester. Jai, 16, will return to school once his shoulder injury and lacerated leg heal.

Dr. Stuart Breisch, an emergency room physician, plans to hold a news conference soon.

"I think they're still trying to recover from their flight," Edmunds said.

Edmunds has known the Breisch family for 18 years. She met them when they arrived in Salt Lake City.

"For me personally, it was very emotional to see them return home without Kali," she said. "She was very, very special to me. And I'm going to miss her a lot."

The family is preparing for a celebration of Kali's life at the Kingsbury Hall at the University of Utah. It's scheduled for Tuesday at 3 p.m.

They needed a large space because they anticipate many people.

"The Breisch family has a lot of friends as well as a lot of students from the high school," Edmunds said.

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E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com