Mother can’t afford funeral for slain son
SAN JOSE — A San Jose mother is struggling to bury her 16- year- old son who was killed last month during an attack in broad daylight, according to the nonprofit group Mothers Against Murder.
The family of Manuel Urzua needs about $ 5,000 in order to pay for the funeral, which has already been postponed because of a lack of money, according to Margaret Petros, executive director of Mothers Against Murder.
The boy’s service was scheduled for Friday, but only if the family can come up with an outstanding balance of $ 5,040 for the funeral cost, Petros said.
“It’s just very sad,” Petros said. “So sad that a mother loses a 16- year- old son and suffers fi nancially, and does not have the money to give her child his dignity back. It’s really a terrible thing.”
Acting San Jose Police Chief Larry Esquivel met with Manuel’s mother, Rina Urzua, and later sent a message via Twitter saying the family needed financial help.
“The devastation is in her eyes,” Petros said. “She is so appreciative of all the help she has received. She appreciates the chief of police meeting with her. All she wants is to give a decent burial to her son.
“She is just in depression, really, not knowing what to do.”
Urzua was reportedly beaten and shot during a gang attack June 19 in broad daylight in an East San Jose neighborhood, authorities said. He died the following day, becoming the city’s 25th homicide victim.
The attack was reported June 19 just after 6 p. m. in the 1600 block of Virginia Avenue, about a block from the intersection of Story and King roads and shadowed by the connector between Highway 101 and Interstate 280.
Police arrived to fi nd Urzua suffering from at least one gunshot wound.
No suspects have been identified in the slaying.
Anyone interested in contributing to Manuel’s funeral can walk into a Wells Fargo Bank and make a donation to account No. 2630028260, payable to Mothers Against Murder for Urzua. The routing No. for electronic deposits is No. 121042882. Checks can also be mailed to Wells Fargo Bank, 100 Main St., Los Altos, CA 94022.