On Thursday, July 24, 2025, Jonathan Dillard “JD” Guidi passed away in a construction accident. Guidi was working for Berkeley Unified School District on the renovation of Sylvia Mendez Elementary School when the accident occurred and is survived by his wife and seven children.
The Berkeley Fire Department responded to a call reporting a workplace accident at approximately 12:50 p.m., according to information from the Berkeley Police Department (BPD) Public Information Office. Upon arriving at the scene, they found Guidi in critical condition, having fallen several stories while installing scaffolding. He was taken to the hospital, where he later passed away from his injuries.
Both BPD and the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration have opened investigations into his death. As the investigations are ongoing, no further information is available to the public at this time.
Guidi’s extended family has created a GoFundMe to support his wife and kids, for whom he was the main financial provider.
He is remembered as a joyful, warm, and loving person — “the kind of person who lit up a space with his laugh, his goofy jokes, and his even goofier dance moves,” wrote Katrina Berryman, Guidi’s sister, on the GoFundMe page.
BUSD Superintendent Enikia Ford Morthel acknowledged Guidi during a school board meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2025. “We recognize and value the many contractors and subcontractors who are involved in modernizing our schools … (how) they give us their time and their heart and their talent and energy to make our learning spaces beautiful. The family and the construction crew remain in our thoughts and we send them strength and comfort in this difficult time,” said Ford Morthel.