The pallbearers wore white shirts and gloves. The desert-brown church with the tall bell tower was filled to overflowing. The casket held a 10-year-old girl who loved purple.
On Tuesday afternoon, hundreds of mourners turned out for the funeral Mass for Amerie Jo Garza, a smiling fourth-grader who was killed a week ago when 18-year-old Salvador Ramos stormed into her Uvalde, Texas elementary school and opened fire on her classroom. Amerie’s funeral was the first since the massacre, with Maite Rodriguez’s scheduled for later Tuesday at an Uvalde funeral home.
Nineteen more funerals are planned for the next two-and-a-half weeks for the 19 children and two teachers who were killed in that classroom on May 24.
Mourner Erika Santiago, her husband and their two children wore purple shirts adorned with images of the victims to Amerie’s funeral. She described Amerie as “a nice little girl who smiled a lot,” and who was “so humble and charismatic but full of life.”
Santiago said her 10-year-old son, Adriel, watched in horror when news reports first showed images of people killed and he recognized his friends Amerie and Maite.
“He told me he did not want to go to school fearing that could happen,” Santiago said. “He told me, ‘Mom, I just don’t feel safe.”‘
Visitation for one of the teachers, 48-year-old Irma Garcia, also was Tuesday, along with visitations for children Nevaeh Bravo and Jose Flores Jr.
Vincent Salazar’s 11-year-old daughter, Layla, has the last of the scheduled services — her visitation is June 15 with the funeral the following day. Salazar said the family likely won’t see Layla’s body until soon before the visitation.
“I understand there were other children as well, but we’re just waiting to get her back,” Salazar said. “That’s all we’re focused on.”
Uvalde County Justice of the Peace Eulalio “Lalo” Diaz Jr. said the bodies of all 21 victims were first sent to the medical examiner’s office in San Antonio for autopsies, which he said is standard for a major crime. Then, because there isn’t enough space at Uvalde’s two funeral homes, many bodies were sent to out-of-town funeral homes until services near. The Uvalde funeral homes are working with the families on when they can see their loved ones, he said.
“It’s mainly because of the number of victims,” Diaz said, asking: “Where do you store that many people?”
https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/mourners-gather-as-funerals-begin-for-uvalde-school-killings-1.5925545