The 10 victims
Family, friends remember slain students, teachers
Family and friends are frantic until getting tragic confirmations,
A nation mourns eight teenage students and two teachers killed in a mass shooting at Santa Fe High School in Texas on Friday.
Saturday morning, FBI officials in Houston said 13 people were injured in the shooting, which occurred in Santa Fe, a small city of about 12,000 people that’s an estimated 35 miles southeast of Houston.
Two teachers and an exchange student from Pakistan are among the dead. Some of the victims had been together in an art class before the shooting.
Jared Conrad Black
Jared Black’s mother, Pamela Stanich, confirmed Saturday morning in a Facebook post that her 17-year-old son was killed during the shooting.
She asked for all media outlets to respect her family’s privacy as they grieve. The post has since been made private.
Earlier in the day, Jared’s step-father Travis Stanich posted that they were still waiting to find out whether Jared had been hurt in the shooting.
“He was in the class room that it started I’m worried sick,” he wrote.
Saturday morning, he posted a photo of a boy standing on a rock, wearing jeans, a blue jacket and a raccoon cap. In the picture, the boy is smiling. The photo includes a message:
Shana Fisher
Kim Maples-Gonzales posted on Facebook that her stepdaughter Shana Fisher was killed in the shooting.
Shana’s aunt Candi Thurman also posted about Shana’s death. She said Shana was in the art room where the shooting began.
“Please keep praying!” she wrote in a Friday tweet.
Christian “Riley” Garcia
A woman who listed her name as AJ said she is Christian “Riley” Garcia’s cousin.
She confirmed the 15-year-old’s death Friday night on Twitter.
“Today I learned about the shooting and come to find out my lil cousin was there. RIP BABY BOY I LOVE YOU! #SantaFeHighSchool,” AJ posted.
Kyle McLeod
Mary Baker, who said she is Kyle’s great-aunt, posted Friday that he died in the shooting.
Kyle was a freshman and an honor roll student at Santa Fe High.
A woman who listed her name as Karee B Carter posted on Facebook Friday, pleading for the public to share her post with photos in hopes of finding her friend’s son.
“My Friend Gail Zumwalt- McLeod son she has not heard from him,” she wrote. “I am sharing this with her permission.”
In both photos, one inside a home and the other in a car, the boy is smiling.
Friday night, Baker commented on the post.
“I am his great aunt and just heard that he was found dead,” she wrote. “My heart goes out to my niece and Mark. Wish I was closer to be with them all. God be with them.”
Glenda Perkins
Glenda Perkins was a substitute teacher at Santa Fe High School.
A statement issued by the Gavelston County District Attorney Saturday identified the teacher as Glenda Perkins. Friends and family referred to her as Ann in social media posts.
TNT Dance Xplosion, a gymnastics club in Santa Fe that Perkins’ daughter once belonged to, confirmed Perkins’ death Friday afternoon on its Facebook page.
“She was an amazing mom and an adored substitute who was loved by all,” the Facebook post said.
On Twitter, several Santa Fe students grieved Perkins’ passing, calling her “the sweetest lady” and a hero.
Angelique Ramirez
Angelique Ramirez’s aunt, Sylvia Prichett, confirmed Friday night in a Facebook post that her niece was killed during the shooting.
Earlier in the day, Prichett posted a plea for help finding Ramirez.
“The school nor police can tell us where she is. All we got info on is that she was shot in the leg. Cannot find her at any local hospital,” the post said.
At about 5 p.m., Prichett updated the post to say her niece did not survive.
“Angelique’s smile was contagious and brightened up any room she walked into,” a family friend wrote on a GoFundMe page set-up to assist her family. “In losing Angelique, her friends and family lost so much.”
Sabika Sheikh
Sabika Sheikh was an exchange student from Pakistan.
Danyal Gilani, a former public affairs officer to Pakistan’s prime minister, tweeted a letter sent to students by the YES Pakistan program.
“It is with greatest sadness in my heart that I need to inform you that one of our YES students, Sabika Sheikh of Pakistan, was killed today in the school shooting in Santa Fe, Texas,” Program Manager Megan Lysaght wrote.
“Please know that the YES program is devastated by this loss and we will remember Sabika and her families in our thoughts and prayers.”
Her death has drawn attention from the Muslim community, including Linda Sarsour, a Palestinian-American and organizer of the Women’s March.
“She was on an exchange program and was supposed to return to her family Eid,” Sarsour wrote.
Eid al-Fitr, an Islamic holiday, marks the end of Ramadan.
Chris Stone
Chris Stone was a junior at Santa Fe High School.
ABC 13 in Houston confirmed his death just after 4 p.m. Friday. Stone’s father appeared on the TV station earlier in the day and said he could not find his son.
“I know it happened in the art room and that’s where Chris was,” his father said.
Cynthia Tisdale
Cynthia Tisdale was teaching the art class when she was shot and killed, according to Facebook posts by her brother-in-law.
“We are all heartbroken,” John Tisdale said in the post.
He asked for continued prayers for Cynthia’s husband and children.
Cynthia and her husband had been married for 47 years.
She was a mother of four and member of Anchor Bible Baptist Church in Pharr, Texas, according to Tisdale’s posts. She had planned on retiring to spend time with her grandchildren.
In addition to working at Santa Fe High School, Cynthia had recently taken on a second job as a server to help financially after her husband was diagnosed with a terminal lung disease, her brother-in-law wrote on Facebook.
One of her granddaughters, Bailey Tisdale described her grandmother as having a contagious smile and a loving personality.
“I don’t know why this happened, but what I do know is that heaven gained the most beautiful angel,” she said. “I can only hope from this point on to make you proud & smile from up above. I love you.”
Kim Jessica Vaughan
Kim Jessica Vaughan was in first-period art class at Santa Fe High School on Friday.
“There was a shooter. I have not found her. Pass this along,” her mother, Rhonda Hart posted at about 2 p.m. to Facebook, along with three pictures of her daughter.
At about 4:30 p.m., Jennifer Morey Ryden, who said she was with Hart while she was searching for her daughter, confirmed Vaughan’s death.
“She has been found,” Ryden posted. “She is now in heaven.”