Portraits of El Paso shooting victims
A veteran, a mother and a teen soccer player were among the dead. Here are some of their stories.
EL PASO — The 20 people slain in a mass shooting in the Texas border city of El Paso on Saturday included citizens of the U.S. and Mexico alike.
Among the victims were an Army veteran shopping with his wife, a young mother protecting her 2-month-old son and a 15-year-old high school student.
More than a day after the attack in a Walmart, authorities had yet to publicly identify the victims, but some family members have begun to share stories about their loved ones.
Arturo Benavides
Every Sunday, Arturo Benavides and his wife, Patricia, went to Walmart after church to do their weekly shopping. But on Saturday morning, Benavides woke up, drank his morning coffee and announced he wanted to go to Walmart a day earlier.
Benavides, 60, a U.S. Army veteran who retired a few years ago as a bus driver for El Paso’s Sun Metro, was at the checkout when the gunman entered. Patricia, who was sitting at a nearby bench, was pushed into a handicapped bathroom for safety, said their niece, Jacklin Luna.
“It is with heavy hearts that we mourn the loss of our loved one Arturo Benavides,” the family said on a memorial posted Sunday on GoFundMe. “He was an amazing husband, son, brother, godfather and uncle.”
Luna, 23, said she shared a particularly close relationship with her uncle, who was also her godfather. He and her aunt didn’t have children. “I was practically their child,” she said. “I spent my childhood waking up at their house, sitting out on the front porch with him on Sunday mornings, listening to the oldies on the radio.
“He was kind, generous, always willing to give everyone the shirt off his back,” she added. “People would look forward to riding on his bus. Regulars would only ride with him. That says a lot.”
Standing outside the house on a muggy, hot Sunday afternoon as family and neighbors streamed in to provide food and emotional support, his nephew, Ruben Rojas, said Benavides was “easygoing,” and a good Catholic who went to Mass at St. Pius X and enjoyed watching sports.
“All of them — basketball, baseball, football, soccer — you name it.”
Benavides, he said, had a strong proclivity toward the Dallas Cowboys.
“He was born and raised in El Paso,” Rojas said, with a laugh.
Another nephew, Jimmy Cervantes, who runs a body mechanic shop in El Paso, said he spent time with Benavides two or three times a week on work trips to Ft. Bliss, a U.S. Army post on the outskirts of the city. His uncle always reveled in the opportunity to be back on base.
“He was a cheerful guy, always telling stories about his war days,” Cervantes said. “The same stories every time. That used to be his battalion. He loved being out there and chitchatting with people. He would start talking with everyone.”
Jordan Anchondo
A 25-year-old mother of three, Jordan Anchondo was shopping for school supplies with her 2-month-old son when the gunman entered the store.
Her sister, Leta Jamrowski, 19, told the Associated Press that her nephew was being treated for broken bones at an El Paso hospital after his mother fell on top of him.
“From the baby’s injuries, they said that more than likely my sister was trying to shield him,” Jamrowski said. “So when she got shot she was holding him and she fell on him, so that’s why he broke some of his bones. So he pretty much lived because she gave her life.”
Javier Amir Rodriguez
A 15-year-old high school student and avid soccer player, Javier Amir Rodriguez was among the deceased, his aunt, Elvira Rodriguez, said Sunday on Facebook.
After Elvira Rodrigeuz and her family could not find him at reunification centers in El Paso on Saturday, she took to social media to appeal for help.
Early Sunday afternoon, officials informed them that he had died.
“Thank you to everybody who helped us search for my nephew,” Elvira Rodriguez said on Facebook. “We found him.
“I just don’t get why ? I know I’ll never have answers. I’m so confused, hurt, mad !!!!!
“May you Rest In Peace baby boy!!!
“We love you so much baby !!!!! ”
Javier Rodriguez played with Express Futbol Club, an El Paso soccer club for boys and girls. On Sunday afternoon, the soccer club announced that it would organize a charity game to help the Rodriguez family, as well as the families of soccer coaches who were also victims.
Elsa Mendoza Marquez
A 57-year-old elementary school teacher from Juarez, Mexico, Elsa Mendoza Marquez crossed the border on Saturday and entered the Walmart while family members remained outside the store, according to social media and media accounts.
“I bid farewell to my companion, the most marvelous of women, a person full of light who will continue illuminating our way for the rest of our lives,” her husband said in a Facebook posting. “We are going to miss you, love.”
Accompanying the post was a photo of the middleaged couple smiling into the camera, a glass of red wine in the foreground.
Marquez was the mother of two adult children.
Times staff writers Jarvie reported from Atlanta and Montero from El Paso. Special correspondent Ingrid Giese in El Paso contributed to this report.