News

UPDATE: Santa Fe High School Shooting Victims Identified

Here’s what we know about the eight students and two teachers who died in Santa Fe High School shooting

/ /
| Posted on (Last Updated: )

After the chaos of a deadly school shooting parents, relatives and friends scramble to find their loved ones. Meanwhile, authorities set about the work of providing medical attention to the wounded and identifying the bodies of those who are killed.

Here’s what we know about the eight students and two teachers who died at the hands of the suspected shooter — 17-year-old Dimitrios Pagourtzi — during the 15-minute assault at Santa Fe High School in Texas on Friday.

The attack is the the worst school shooting since 17 people were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., two months ago.

Here are some of their stories:

CYNTHIA TISDALE

Family members confirmed that substitute teacher Cynthia Tisdale was among the victims killed in the shooting.

Tisdale’s niece, Leia Olinde, said Tisdale was like a mother to her and helped her shop for wedding dresses last year.

“She helped me put it on, she helped fix my hair,” Olinde said through tears.

“She was wonderful. She was just so loving,” said Olinde, 25. “I’ve never met a woman who loved her family so much.”

She said Tisdale was married to her husband for close to 40 years and that the two had three children and eight grandchildren.

Tisdale’s house was the center for family gatherings, and she loved cooking Thanksgiving dinner and decorating her house, Olinde said.

Olinde’s fiance, Eric Sanders, said of Tisdale that “words don’t explain her lust for life and the joy she got from helping people.”

___

SABIKA SHEIKH

A Pakistani foreign exchange student is among those killed in the shooting, according to a leader at a program for foreign exchange students and the Pakistani Embassy in Washington, D.C.

Megan Lysaght, manager of the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange & Study Abroad program (YES), sent a letter to students in the program confirming that Sabika was killed in the shooting.

“Please know that the YES program is devastated by this loss and we will remember Sabika and her families in our thoughts and prayers,” Lysaght wrote.

She said the program would be holding a moment of silence for the girl, who is pictured beaming in a shirt that said “Texas” in a photo being shared on social media.

Lysaght declined further comment when contacted by The Associated Press and referred calls to a State Department spokesman.

The Pakistan Embassy in Washington, D.C., identified Sabika as a victim of the shooting on Twitter and wrote that “our thoughts and prayers are with Sabika’s family and friends.”

The Pakistan Association of Greater Houston said on Facebook that Sabika was due to go back home to Pakistan for Eid al-Fitr, a three-day holiday that marks the end of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.

“May Allah bless her soul and may she RIP,” the statement said.

___

CHRISTOPHER JAKE STONE

Chris Stone, 17, was in the final weeks of his junior year and was in the art class where witnesses say the shooting took place.

His family shared recent photos of the teenager dressed in a tuxedo, including one with Bresdon Perez who identified himself as Stone’s cousin. In a message on Twitter, Perez mourned Stone’s death writing, ” I love you cousin, I didn’t say it enough. I miss you, now more than ever. In my heart and our family’s, you will be with us forever.”

___

ANGELIQUE RAMIREZ

Angelique Ramirez’s aunt, Sylvia Pritchett, confirmed her niece’s death in a Facebook post that followed pleas for information about the teenager’s whereabouts.

Pritchett said, the family had learned Ramirez had been shot in the leg before she died.

In separate Facebook post, Araceli Ramirez, who appears to be Angelique’s older sister, wrote: “i’ll never forget my best friend, the first baby i ever held in my arms.. my baby sister, the person who looked up to me for the longest time, she was so outgoing, so precious, kind, beautiful, smart…”

___ 

GLENDA PERKINS

Perkins, a substitute teacher, was among two adults killed in the shooting. According to those who knew her, she was a well-loved figure on campus and in the community and was sometimes referred to as “Grandma Perkins,” CBS Dallas / Fort Worth reported.

A Facebook post by a friend confirmed her death and called for prayers for her surviving husband and daughter: “Ms. Ann, has passed away as a result of today’s tragic events. She was an amazing mom and an adored substitute who was loved by all.”

___

SHANA FISHER

Shana Fisher celebrated her 16th birthday just nine days before she was killed on campus, her mother told the Houston Chronicle.

“She was shy and sweet,” her mother said. “She had a lot of love in her heart.”

Candi Thurman, who says she is Fisher’s aunt, said in a tweet the teen was in art class at the time of the shooting.

Fisher’s parents told the local ABC station, WFAA, they believe she was one of the first victims killed.

Her family isn’t being allowed to see her body yet. An autopsy is planned for Monday, the station reported.

___

KIMBERLY JESSICA VAUGHAN

Kimberly Jessica Vaughan was among the students in the art class Friday morning, according to a Facebook message by her mother Rhonda Hart, who wrote the post after failing to hear from her daughter.

Hart updated her feed with other posts, including a call for gun control. ” Folks-call your damn senators. Call your congressmen. We need GUN CONTROL. WE NEED TO PROTECT OUR KIDS,” she wrote.

Hours later she added, “#fightforkim #kimberlyjessica #oneof10 We need to fight for our kids. This is complete bull****.

A GoFundMe page described Kim as a long-time Girl Scout and a high school freshman.

Kimberly Jessica Vaughan.

___

JARED CONRAD BLACK

According to the Houston Chronicle, Jared ConradAaron Kyle McLeodAaron Kyle McLeodBlack, another 17-year-old, loved anime, art, wrestling and wolves.

___

AARON KYLE MCLEOD

Aaron Kyle McLeod was a student at Santa Fe High School, according to KHOU. 

___

CHRISTIAN RILEY GARCIA

A Facebook post from Pastor Keenan Smith of Crosby Church in Crosby, Texas requested prayers for the family of a 15-year-old member of the congregation named Christian Riley Garcia.

According to the post, Garcia grew up in the church and was baptized there. It also featured a recent photo of him at a construction site, next to a door frame with scripture written on it. The post says it was going to be his new bedroom.

_____________________________

Among those injured include a school resource officer and a sophomore baseball player.

JOHN BARNES

School police officer John Barnes was shot in the arm when he confronted the gunman.

A bullet damaged the bone and a major blood vessel around Barnes’ elbow, which required surgery to repair, said David Marshall, chief nursing officer at the University of Texas Medical Branch. He said Barnes was in stable condition.

Barnes was the first to engage Pagourtzis, according to Marshall.

___

ROME SHUBERT

Sophomore baseball player Rome Shubert said the gunman walked into his classroom and tossed something onto desks.

Shubert told the Houston Chronicle that he then heard “three loud pops” before the attacker fled into the hall. Shubert said he realized he’d been wounded as he was running out the back door.

Shubert said he was hit in the back of his head with what he said was a bullet, but that it “missed everything vital.” He also tweeted that he was OK and stable.

Photo via Rhonda Hart's Facebook

Share