Vigil held for Aptos High School student killed in stabbing

WATSONVILLE, Calif. (KION) A vigil was held Sunday for the 17-year-old who was killed in a stabbing at Aptos High School earlier this week.

Through tearful words, members of the community gathered to pay tribute to the teen and their memory. Several school officials were in attendance. The family says the name of the victim is Gerardo and those who knew him say his death was a devastating blow.

“We’ve seen Gerardo grow up since he was a toddler so we pretty much seen him grow up since he was in before elementary all the way to this recent tragic event. He was just a super sweet, kind-hearted, young man and that’s how I’m going to remember him,” said a family friend.  

Many of the speakers came out in solidarity to speak out against violence towards youth, especially on school grounds where they're supposed to be safe.

"We have a shared responsibility to keep our youth safe, our school safe, our community safe. A shared responsibility to share provide positive alternatives for our youth," said Maria Orozco, PVUSD Board Trustee.

The Santa Cruz Sherrif's Office described the two suspects involved in the killing of Gerardo as "gang involved." The victim's sister says that Gerado was not a gang member or affiliated with gang activity.

In a Facebook post, the sister says:

“I want to say thank you for everyone who has showed their support for my brother and our family in this difficult time, I'm the one that had to make the phone call and im the one that stayed with him and provided first aide until the paramedics arrived and in his hand was the picture of the Virgin Mary with a prayer that he carried everywhere. I am completely heartbroken. I lost a brother but my parents lost a son and there's no words to describe the pain that we are currently going through. I also want to say that my brother was not a gang member or associated with a gang before there's a false narrative out there. He was a respectful, strong, kind hearted individual who had plans for the future. He worked hard for everything he had and never wanted to worry us. He will be remembered by everyone for his kind hearted personality and his empathy for those around him. He was never one to start problems and even with this incident he refused to acknowledge those two individuals. This was a calculated attack and my brother deserves justice these two individuals were known for violent tendencies and had previously had records with the school, this was not the first instance of them being in possession of a weapon at school and unfortunately nothing was done. My brother was murdered and nothing that I do or say will every bring him back. What I am asking for is justice. As a family we have decided not to bury my brother. He will be coming home with us and when one of us passes he will be burried with us. My brother will not be left alone. We will however have a memorial service for him at church as well as mass with an open casket for those who wish to pay him respect. As soon as I have finished the arrangements I will have a date for those who wish to join us. I would also like to request for everyone to wear their face masks as we are still in a pandemic.”

The suspects in the stabbing have yet to be identified.