UVALDE, Texas — Amerie Jo Garza dreamed of one day becoming an art teacher. But the 10-year-old girl’s dream was destroyed when a gunman entered Robb Elementary, murdering 19 children and two teachers. It took 77 minutes for law enforcement to take down the perpetrator.
“We take things one day at a time and she left us a lot of memories,” said Amerie’s step-grandmother Berlinda Arreola.
Ever since May 24, 2022, Arreola has fought alongside other Robb Elementary shooting victims’ families for change and accountability. At the same time, she’s been closely following the development of a new elementary school that’s expected to break ground on October 28, according to the Uvalde CISD Moving Forward Foundation.
“Because of what happened we’re building a better school and we’re hoping to save more lives that way,” Arreola said. “This school is being built very securely.”
Jesse Rizo misses his niece 9-year-old Jackie Cazares every day. Jackie was a social media loving free spirit who was always willing to help others. Rizo expects to feel bittersweet when he attends the groundbreaking at the site of the new school, which is slated to open in time for the 2025-2026 school year.
“It could open many doors for these young kids, doctors, lawyers, things that ordinarily they wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for the souls that were lost that day. It’s one of those moments that’s somber but you got to look at it say maybe something positive will come out of it one day,” Rizo said.
Meantime, families who lost loved ones in the tragedy are also hoping to have more answers and accountability as a legal battle over the release of public records into the shooting is ongoing.
“All you can do is hold on and keep the faith and fight the fight because in the end you want the children to be remember but also for justice to be served in the end.”
So far, 75% of the funding to build the new school has been raised.
The groundbreaking event begins at 10 a.m. on October 28 at Fourth Street and Leona.
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