What we know about 21 Texas school shooting victims; teacher's widower dies of heart attack
Uvalde victim Irma Garcia's husband, Joe Garcia, died due to a heart attack, ABC News confirmed.
UVALDE, Texas -- A fourth-grade teacher, several sets of cousins and a 10-year-old boy whose family called him "the life of the party" were among those killed in a mass shooting at a Texas elementary school on Tuesday, ABC News has learned.
LIST: GoFundMe pages to help families of Robb Elementary School shooting victims
Nineteen children and two teachers were killed after a gunman opened fire at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, west of San Antonio, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
The husband of one of the teachers killed also died two days later from a heart attack. The couple was set to celebrate their 25-year anniversary.
The alleged gunman -- identified by officials as 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, a student at Uvalde High School -- is dead, authorities said.
LIVE UPDATES: Texas elementary school shooting
Here's what we know about the victims so far.
Nevaeh Bravo, 10
In the photo above, the grandmother of Nevaeh Bravo, held a photo of her during a prayer vigil, one of many that have been held since the deadly shooting.
Jacklyn Jaylen Cazares, 10
Jacinto Cazares, the father of 10-year-old Jacklyn Jaylen Cazares, told ABC News that his "little girl" was "full of life."
"She had the biggest heart. Jackie was the one that would go out of her way to help anyone. It gives me some comfort, that she would be the little cracker that would have done something to help her classmates in that very scary scenario," he said.
Cazares told ABC News that he is holding the school and the police responsible for the massacre.
TAKE ACTION: Resources for survivors and victims of gun violence
"There was at least 40 lawmen armed to the teeth but didn't do a darn thing [until] it was far too late. The situation could've been over quick if they had better tactical training, and we as a community witnessed it firsthand. I'm a gun owner and I do not blame the weapons used in this tragedy. I'm angry how easy it is to get one and young you can be to purchase one," he said.
Jacklyn's cousin, 10-year-old Annabell Rodriguez, was also killed in the massacre.
Makenna Lee Elrod, 10
The family of 10-year-old Makenna described her as "a light to all who knew her."
The little girl loved to play softball and practice gymnastics and also enjoyed singing and dancing.
MORE: Boy who survived Texas school shooting recalls gunman saying 'you're all gonna die'
She was also a big fan of animals.
"Makenna made friends everywhere she went," said her aunt, Allison McCullough. "She had brothers, sisters, and cousins who she loved to play with. Her smile would light up a room. Makenna loved to write notes to her family and leave them in hidden places to be found later. Makenna was a natural leader and loved school. Makenna loved going to the ranch with her dad to feed animals and ride on the ranger. She was full of life and will live on in the hearts of all who knew and loved her."
McCullough told ABC News that the teachers who shielded Makenna during the shooting were McCullough's best friends.
McCullough and Makenna's mom are twins and are both teachers for the district.
"Makenna was so beautiful," said McCullough. "We are devastated."
Jose Flores, 10
Eliahna Garcia
Relatives of 10-year-old Eliahna Garcia learned late Tuesday that she was among those killed, her aunt, Siria Arizmemdi said.
"She was very happy and very outgoing," Arizmendi, a 5th grade teacher at Flores Elementary School in the same school district, said Wednesday. "She loved to dance and play sports. She was big into family, enjoyed being with the family."
Irma Garcia
Garcia's family members confirmed to ABC News on Wednesday that she lost her life in the shooting.
Her husband, Joe Garcia, died Thursday due to a heart attack, ABC News confirmed through the couple's nephew. The two were set to celebrate their 25th anniversary this year.
Irma Garcia served as Robb Elementary educator Eva Mireles' co-teacher, family said. They were in the same classroom when they were killed.
The mother of four has been a teacher for 23 years, all of them served at Robb Elementary.
Uziyah Garcia, 8
At Uvalde's civic center, Manny Renfro learned that his grandson, 8-year-old Uziyah Garcia, was among those killed, the told the Associated Press.
"The sweetest little boy that I've ever known," Renfro said. "I'm not just saying that because he was my grandkid."
Renfro said Uziyah last visited him in San Angelo during spring break.
"We started throwing the football together and I was teaching him pass patterns. Such a fast little boy and he could catch a ball so good," Renfro said. "There were certain plays that I would call that he would remember and he would do it exactly like we practiced."
Amerie jo Garza, 10
Amerie jo Garza's father, Angel Garza, told ABC News that his daughter just turned 10 on May 10. Garza met with U.S. Marshals Tuesday night, who informed him that his daughter had been killed in the shooting at her elementary school.
"Thank you everyone for the prayers and help trying to find my baby," Garza wrote in a statement to ABC News. "She's been found. My little love is now flying high with the angels above. Please don't take a second for granted. Hug your family. Tell them you love them. I love you Amerie jo. Watch over your baby brother for me."
Xavier Lopez, 10
Fourth-grader Xavier Lopez died in Tuesday's elementary school shooting, his family confirmed to ABC News.
According to his cousin, Xavier's mom was at his awards ceremony one to two hours prior to the shooting, not knowing it would be the last time she would see him.
"When his parents had BBQs, he was always the life of the party ... He liked dancing. He always loved doing things with his mom. Doing face masks. Doing TikToks. He just did a TikTok the other day with her," the child's grandmother, Amelia Sandoval, told ABC News.
Jayce Carmelo Luevanos, 10
Zeke Luevanos, the cousin of shooting victims Jayce Carmelo Luevanos and Jailah Nicole Silguero, called the kids "angels" who "always had a smile on their face."
"I can't believe this happened to our angels, after our grandpa just passed away two weeks ago so much loss in so little time," Silguero said.
Tess Mata, 10
The Mata family said their 10-year-old daughter Tess was a bubbly little girl who loved to dance and had dreams of being TikTok famous.
"Every time. Every time we would see another mass shooting on the news we would say, 'That won't happen here. That could never happen here. Not in Uvalde.' And then it did happen here, and then it happened to my daughter. Now my daughter is gone, and I will never get to hold her again," Veronica Mata.
Her father Gerry was at the school during the attack and was held back by law enforcement as he desperately tried to go inside and find his daughter.
Maranda Mathis, 11
Maranda's mother confirms to ABC News her daughter is one of the victims. Maranda's 2nd grade brother Bruce was also at the school but was not injured.
Eva Mireles, 44
Eva Mireles, a fourth-grade teacher at the elementary school, was killed in the shooting, her aunt, Lydia Martinez Delgado, confirmed to ABC News. She had been a teacher in the school district for approximately 17 years, Delgado said.
"I'm furious that these shootings continue. These children are innocent. Rifles should not be easily available to all," Delgado said. "This is my hometown, a small community of less then 20,000. I never imagined this would happen to especially to loved ones."
"All we can do is pray hard for our country, state, schools and especially the families of all," she said.
She was remembered as a loving mother and wife.
"She was adventurous. I would definitely say those wonderful things about her. She is definitely going to be very missed," said 34-year-old relative Amber Ybarra, of San Antonio.
Mireles posted a letter on the school's website at the start of the school year, introducing herself to her new students.
"Welcome to the 4th grade! We have a wonderful year ahead of us!" Mireles wrote, noting she had been teaching 17 years, loved running and hiking, and had a "supportive, fun, and loving family." She mentioned that her husband was a school district police officer, and they had a grown daughter and three "furry friends."
Alithia Ramirez, 10
Alithia Ramirez was a 10-year-old student at Robb Elementary School who was identified as one of the children killed in the massacre, ABC News reports.
Her grandmother described her as a nice girl and talented artist who helped her parents with her siblings.
The family waited all day at the Civic Center before learning of her death after midnight.
Annabell Rodriguez, 10
Aunt Polly Flores identified her two nieces Annabell Rodriguez, 10, and Jacklyn Jaylen Cazares, 10, as students killed in the Uvalde shooting.
They were both in the fourth grade and in the same class at Robb Elementary, she said.
Maite Rodriguez, 10
Maite's mother told the AP "she was charismatic. She was goal driven. She was ambitious. She was determined. She was focused. She was competitive. Smart, bright, beautiful, happy. ... Why I want the world to know? Because I don't want her just to be another kid. I don't want her just to be another face. I don't want any of those kids to be just another face. Each one of them has a story to tell. And this just horrendous act just cut everything short for them."
Alexandria Aniyah Rubio
Alexandria Aniyah Rubio was recognized on the day of the shooting for honor roll and being a "good citizen."
Her family has been sharing their grief on Facebook.
"My beautiful, smart, Alexandria Aniyah Rubio was recognized [Tuesday] for All-A honor roll. She also received the good citizen award. We told her we loved her and would pick her up after school. We had no idea this was goodbye."
Layla Salazar
Layla's father Vincent Salazar told the Associated Press that every morning, as he drove his daughter to school, he would play "Sweet Child O' Mine" by Guns 'N Roses and they'd sing along.
Jailah Nicole Silguero, 11
Veronica Luevanos, whose 10-year-old daughter, Jaliah Nicole Silguero, was among the victims, told Univision in a tearful interview that her daughter did not want to go to school Tuesday and that the girl seemed to sense something was going to happen.
Jaliah's cousin also died in the shooting.
Eliahana Cruz Torres
Adolfo Cruz spent more than 10 hours standing outside of Robb Elementary to find answers about his granddaughter, Eliahana Cruz Torres.
Late Tuesday night, he found out she was killed, Cruz told ABC News Wednesday morning.
Rojelio Torres, 10
The mother of 10-year-old Rojelio Torres confirmed to ABC News her son was killed in the shooting. She said her boy was a "very smart and loving child."
The Associated Press and ABC Owned TV Stations contributed to this report.
