First student victims identified
By nightfall in the Texas town of Uvalde, the names of the first student victims had began to emerge.
Eight-year-old Uziyah Garcia was identified by his family as one of the children killed in the school shooting attack.
“The sweetest little boy that I’ve ever known,” Garcia’s grandfather, Manny Renfro, told the Associated Press. “I’m not just saying that because he was my grandkid.”
Renfro said Uziyah last visited him in San Angelo during spring break.
“We started throwing the football together and I was teaching him pass patterns. Such a fast little boy and he could catch a ball so good. There were certain plays that I would call that he would remember and he would do it exactly like we practiced.
Lisa Garza, 54, of Arlington, Texas, also mourned the death of her cousin, Xavier Javier Lopez.
“He was just a loving 10-year-old little boy, just enjoying life, not knowing that this tragedy was going to happen today,” she said. “He was very bubbly, loved to dance with his brothers, his mom. This has just taken a toll on all of us.”
Lopez’s cousin earlier told KSAT the local ABC news affiliate, that his mother was with him at the school during an awards ceremony just hours before the shooting, not realising it would be the last time she would see him.
Amerie Jo Garza, also 10, was identified by family as one of the children killed.
Her father, Angel Garza, told ABC News the little girl had just turned 10 on 10 May.
“Thank you everyone for the prayers and help trying to find my baby,” Angel Garza wrote to ABC in a statement. “She’s been found. My little love is now flying high with the angels above. Please don’t take a second for granted. Hug your family. Tell them you love them. I love you Amerie Jo. Watch over your baby brother for me.”
