EL PASO, Texas — Last Saturday the residents of El Paso saw their community and their lives change when a mass shooting took place at the Walmart near the Cielo Vista Mall where 22 people have died and more than 20 more were injured.

As the days have passed and the El Paso community has come together to heal, some of El Paso’s high school student-athletes and their coaches have had to reflect on what El Paso, their friendships and their family have meant to them.

“It was very scary when we heard what had happened,” Franklin volleyball player Alyssa Duran said. “After I found out my family was fine, it makes you want to hold them even tighter, be with them even more. Our friends, our family are important. Our city is in a lot of pain right now and we have to support one another. What happened last Saturday was an eye opener and we have to come together to heal.”

Click here to support El Paso Shooting Victims Fund for Relief for victims

El Paso High volleyball coach Yesenia Alarcon-Ortega said her and her team talked about the tragedy last Saturday after the team was wrapping up scrimmage play.

“Our kids came together after an initial panic and many of our kids went to a vigil Sunday at El Paso High,” the longtime Tigers coach said. “It’s a very tough time for our community and everyone who was affected by the shooting is in our prayers. We want to do well as a team for everyone who is affected.”

Bowie football players Juan Camacho and Justin Diaz looked back on last Saturday’s events with plenty of emotion.

“It really affected our community,” Diaz said. “We have a strong community and for someone to target hispanics in that way is very sad to see. I pray for all those affected by what happened and I just want those who survived to get better. We as a community have to be there for one another and help each other out.”

Added Camacho: “I want to dedicate this season for those who we lost and for those injured. We at Bowie want to win for them. It’s sad to see this happen to so many people, it’s just something that shouldn’t ever happen.”

Read the rest of the story at the El Paso Times.

A North Carolina high school football player has been charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle in connection with the death of a teammate who fell when riding in the back of his pickup truck.https://www.instagram.com/p/B1dRx_dpxWl/?utm_source=ig_embed

As reported by the Charlotte Observer, an undisclosed 17-year-old Mooresville (N.C.) High School senior was driving in the school’s parking lot during a football team service day when his 15-year-old teammate Gavin Sharpe fell from his tailgate. Emergency responders were called to the incident on campus and found Sharpe unconscious. He was transported to a local hospital and died of injuries suffered in the fall just two days later.

The Sharpe family has been stunned by the sudden loss of their teenager, a three-spot star — football, wrestling, track and field — and bridge builder of the football program. While a family friend started a GoFundMe account to help the Sharpe family defray the cost of Gavin Sharpe’s funeral, that hardly helps bring him back.

View this post on Instagram

Tomorrow night there will be a table setup near the entrance to the stadium where the #63 stickers are available for purchase. (As shown in photo 2) All proceeds will go to the family of Gavin Sharpe. 5”stickers are $5 2”stickers are $2. #gavinstrong #mooresvillefootball

A post shared by Mooresville Sports (@mooresvillesports) on Aug 22, 2019 at 12:13am PDT

“He was an encouragement to his teammates and friends both on and off the field,” Sharpe’s obituary reads. “He was loved by so many and he will live on in our hearts forever.”

The GoFundMe account has already raised nearly $15,000 of its $30,000 goal.

An unspeakable tragedy unfolded in Philadelphia on Sunday when one Mastery Charter High School football star was shot dead by a teammate who also happened to be his brother.

As the Philadelphia Inquirer reported, Fayaadh Gillard has been charged with murder, possession of an instrument of crime, unsworn falsification to authorities, and obstructing justice in connection with the shooting death of his twin brother, Suhail Gillard, in an apartment. Police documents show that the Gillard brothers were together in the apartment with relatives when the shooting happened, with their father allegedly teaching them how to handle a gun.

Indeed, fellow members of the Mastery Charter football team intimidated that the shooting had to have been an accident, with the team and broader school community rallying around Fayaadh Gillard in support of him as he grieves the death of his twin and his own role in it.

“I know Fayaadh didn’t do it on purpose,” Trenton Williams, a Mastery Charter football captain, told the Inquirer. “I know it was an accident. That’s his twin. His twin would never do that. They had much love for each other. I just cried my eyes out.”

Fayaadh Gillard is currently out on bail, with the Inquirer citing a court source claiming that the murder charge against Fayaadh Gillard will likely be downgraded to third degree murder or third degree manslaughter, both of which allow for those charged to post bail.

Tragedy struck an Arkansas highway Monday when a youth football team from Memphis was involved in a bus crash as it traveled back home from a tournament in Texas.

As reported by our partners with the Memphis Commercial Appeal, the bus in question was involved in a crash on Interstate 30 near Benton, Ark. One child was reported as dying in the accident, while some 45 other people were reportedly injured in the crash. It is unknown how many of those injured are children and how many are adult chaperones.

The team from the Orange Mound Youth Association — a football program in a historically black neighborhood of Memphis that has rallied around the youth football teams — was en route from Dallas, where it competed on Sunday. The youth football players were all elementary school aged, according to the Associated Press.

“On behalf of all Memphians, our hearts and prayers go out to the Orange Mound children and their families involved in this morning’s tragic bus accident in Arkansas,” Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland told the media in a statement.

Little Rock-based Arkansas Children’s Hospital, which is approximately 25 miles from the site of the crash, received 25 injured children, all of whom are currently listed as stable. Officials at Arkansas Children’s also moved quickly to establish a family reunification area, while state troopers have questioned the driver of the bus, which appears to have crashed near a highway exit with a sharp curve.

A bus carrying a junior varsity girls basketball team in Illinois crashed with a semitrailer truck Wednesday night as the bus was returning from a basketball game.

The accident, which took place near Downs, Ill., claimed the lives of two adults in the accident, while eight of the 11 students on the bus were transported to nearby hospitals with non-life threatening injuries, per the Associated Press.

The team hails from Normal (Ill.) West High School and had been participating in a game in Champaign against Champaign Central High School. The Pantagraph, an Illinois newspaper, reported that the team’s coach Steve Price was in fair condition Thursday after suffering multiple broken bones in the crash, while the bus driver remained in critical condition.

The two deceased have been identified as girls basketball volunteer Charlie Crabtree, a 72-year-old Normal resident, and the driver of the truck, Ryan E. Hute of Delmar, Iowa.

According to police the semi was traveling in the wrong direction on Interstate-74 Wednesday night, and an investigation is ongoing.

“People care about each other in this school and this community, and I think they just wanted to be together during this horrible tragedy,” McClean County Unit 5 schools spokesperson Dayna Brown told the Pantagraph and other assembled press Wednesday night. “We can’t thank this community enough for their support. We will be sure that everyone is supported in anything they need.”

A South Carolina community is mourning the death of a high school football player who was killed in a car crash.

Joshua Daniel Burgess, a 17-year-old senior at Wade Hampton High School (Greenville, S.C.), was pronounced dead on scene of the Wednesday crash in front of a Target shopping plaza, reported Greenville County Coroner B. Parks Evans, Jr., to The State and other outlets.

Additionally, three others have been hospitalized with serious injuries after the three-vehicle collision involving a stolen car, the Greer (S.C.) Police Department told The State and other outlets.

Burgess played wide receiver and cornerback for Wade Hampton.

According to a Facebook post from the Taylors Youth Association, Burgess was also a youth football coach.

“Josh was a great guy and will never be forgotten. He was a great coach and mentor to our players,” read a Facebook post on the association’s page. According to the post, there will be a candlelight vigil in Burgess’ memory Thursday night at the high school.

According to police, Burgess was driving a 2016 Toyota Corolla when the crash occurred just before 8:30 p.m. Wednesday night.

As The State describes, Burgess had two passengers in the car, which was stopped at a red light when it was struck from behind by a 2016 Honda Accord. Police reported that the Accord was stolen earlier that day.

Police told The State and other that witnesses claimed the Accord was speeding when it crashed into the Corolla.

The impact caused Burgess’ car to roll on its side after being hit from behind, and the Accord went into the median, “where it struck a 1998 Honda that was attempting to make a left turn,” according to what police said.

Both of Burgess’ passengers were taken to an area hospital, along with the driver of the stolen Accord, according to what police told outlets. Both Burgess’ sister and cousin were in the car with him as they were returning from church, according to WYFF.

According to a GoFundMe set up for the Burgess family, Joshua’s sister Lily needs “extensive orthopaedic surgery.” In one day, the campaign has raised over $18,000.

Per The State, there has been no update on the conditions of Burgess’ cousin or the driver of the Accord.

No charges have been filed, but the collision remains under investigation.

An Oklahoma school district is mourning the loss of a softball player who was killed when the team’s bus collided with a drunk driver after a game.

As reported by Oklahoma City ABC affiliate KOCO, Konawa Junior High sixth grade softball player Rhindi Isaacs was killed when the school bus carrying members of her softball team collided head on with an SUV that was reportedly piloted by a drunk driver. The male driver and female passenger of the SUV were also pronounced dead on the scene, according to ABC.

The team bus, which was carrying six players and their coach, was returning from a game in Okemah, Okla. when it collided with the SUV, which was allegedly driven by a man who was charged with a DUI just a week earlier and also had two prior DUI convictions from prior decades.

On Sunday, Isaacs’ former schoolmates met at Konawa Junior High School for a prayer vigil in her memory, still trying to make sense of her sudden, permanent absence.

“Anytime one of your kids gets hurt, you feel it, just like it would be if it were yours,” Konawa Public Schools Superintendent Cory Ellis told KOCO. “At this point, it’s definitely going to have an imprint on everybody from here on out, and the best thing we can do is provide support.”

A high school wrestler in Florida was struck and killed by a driver while out for a morning run, leaving a community behind to grieve his loss and remember his spirit.

As reported by Jacksonville news network WJXT, Ponte Vedra (Fla.) High School wrestler Zander Laurin was hit and killed Wednesday after he was struck by a pickup truck while out on a run before school.

The sophomore was a key member of the school’s wrestling team and was training to attempt the entry test for the U.S. Naval Sea Cadets Corps, according to his mother.

“He would always pick everybody up. That was … his best quality. I mean, he, no matter, what the outcome of the match was, you know, (win) or lose he was right there with his teammates,” Laurin’s wrestling coach, Josean Gonzalez, told WJXT. “We’re really going to miss him.”

While classmates he left behind continue to memorialize Laurin in school, one of his friends has already been moved to help remember him outside school as well; per WJXT, a candlelight vigil will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Mickler’s Landing Beach Park in Ponte Vedra.

A Louisiana high school football player collapsed and died after his team’s practice.

As reported by the New Orleans Times-Picayune and Louisiana NBC affiliate WDSU, Amite (La.) High School 15-year-old Terrance Allen collapsed and died after the conclusion of one of the team’s summer practices.

Per the Times-Picayune, the Amite Police Department was notified of an emergency at the school. EMTs and firefighters were quickly on the scene, before local police, but were unable to resuscitate the teenager before he was pronounced dead after arriving at a local hospital.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vknd9TrXMXg

There has been no reason provided for Allen’s death to this point. In fact, all information about the incident remains limited, though his team posted a memorial image to its Facebook account shortly after Allen’s passing.

https://www.facebook.com/1627109284198197/photos/a.1627110327531426/2327924980783287/?type=3&theater

A Toledo (Ohio) Scott High School rising senior football player was shot and killed Sunday in broad daylight, raising concerns about public safety in the city and what caused such a promising life to end so early.

As reported by the Toledo Blade, 18-year-old Glenn Scurles, a soon-to-be Scott senior, was shot on Woodrow Boulevard in the city. He was aided with chest compressions from a neighbor who witnessed the shooting, but was later pronounced dead at the city’s Mercy Health St. Vincent Medical Center.

The youngest of seven children, Scurles went by the nickname Gezzy to his family and friends, who insist he was the farthest thing from a “gangbanger.”

“This is our little brother,” Jasmine Tucker, one of Scurles’ six older sisters, told the Blade. “This is something that’s unexpected. He wasn’t a gangbanger. He don’t be in the street. He don’t go to clubs. He don’t drink. He don’t do none of that.

“He was a mama’s boy, my mom’s only son. He was a real good football player, but he also loved spending time with his family, his nieces and sisters.”

Scurles’ loss is sure to be keenly felt across the Scott community. He was said to be greatly liked, and even a mentor to other Scott students.

Now, they’ll mourn his loss together with his family, wondering what might have been of such a promising life.

EL PASO, Texas — Last Saturday the residents of El Paso saw their community and their lives change when a mass shooting took place at the Walmart near the Cielo Vista Mall where 22 people have died and more than 20 more were injured.

As the days have passed and the El Paso community has come together to heal, some of El Paso’s high school student-athletes and their coaches have had to reflect on what El Paso, their friendships and their family have meant to them.

“It was very scary when we heard what had happened,” Franklin volleyball player Alyssa Duran said. “After I found out my family was fine, it makes you want to hold them even tighter, be with them even more. Our friends, our family are important. Our city is in a lot of pain right now and we have to support one another. What happened last Saturday was an eye opener and we have to come together to heal.”

Click here to support El Paso Shooting Victims Fund for Relief for victims

El Paso High volleyball coach Yesenia Alarcon-Ortega said her and her team talked about the tragedy last Saturday after the team was wrapping up scrimmage play.

“Our kids came together after an initial panic and many of our kids went to a vigil Sunday at El Paso High,” the longtime Tigers coach said. “It’s a very tough time for our community and everyone who was affected by the shooting is in our prayers. We want to do well as a team for everyone who is affected.”

Bowie football players Juan Camacho and Justin Diaz looked back on last Saturday’s events with plenty of emotion.

“It really affected our community,” Diaz said. “We have a strong community and for someone to target hispanics in that way is very sad to see. I pray for all those affected by what happened and I just want those who survived to get better. We as a community have to be there for one another and help each other out.”

Added Camacho: “I want to dedicate this season for those who we lost and for those injured. We at Bowie want to win for them. It’s sad to see this happen to so many people, it’s just something that shouldn’t ever happen.”

Read the rest of the story at the El Paso Times.

A North Carolina high school football player has been charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle in connection with the death of a teammate who fell when riding in the back of his pickup truck.https://www.instagram.com/p/B1dRx_dpxWl/?utm_source=ig_embed

As reported by the Charlotte Observer, an undisclosed 17-year-old Mooresville (N.C.) High School senior was driving in the school’s parking lot during a football team service day when his 15-year-old teammate Gavin Sharpe fell from his tailgate. Emergency responders were called to the incident on campus and found Sharpe unconscious. He was transported to a local hospital and died of injuries suffered in the fall just two days later.

The Sharpe family has been stunned by the sudden loss of their teenager, a three-spot star — football, wrestling, track and field — and bridge builder of the football program. While a family friend started a GoFundMe account to help the Sharpe family defray the cost of Gavin Sharpe’s funeral, that hardly helps bring him back.

View this post on Instagram

Tomorrow night there will be a table setup near the entrance to the stadium where the #63 stickers are available for purchase. (As shown in photo 2) All proceeds will go to the family of Gavin Sharpe. 5”stickers are $5 2”stickers are $2. #gavinstrong #mooresvillefootball

A post shared by Mooresville Sports (@mooresvillesports) on Aug 22, 2019 at 12:13am PDT

“He was an encouragement to his teammates and friends both on and off the field,” Sharpe’s obituary reads. “He was loved by so many and he will live on in our hearts forever.”

The GoFundMe account has already raised nearly $15,000 of its $30,000 goal.

An unspeakable tragedy unfolded in Philadelphia on Sunday when one Mastery Charter High School football star was shot dead by a teammate who also happened to be his brother.

As the Philadelphia Inquirer reported, Fayaadh Gillard has been charged with murder, possession of an instrument of crime, unsworn falsification to authorities, and obstructing justice in connection with the shooting death of his twin brother, Suhail Gillard, in an apartment. Police documents show that the Gillard brothers were together in the apartment with relatives when the shooting happened, with their father allegedly teaching them how to handle a gun.

Indeed, fellow members of the Mastery Charter football team intimidated that the shooting had to have been an accident, with the team and broader school community rallying around Fayaadh Gillard in support of him as he grieves the death of his twin and his own role in it.

“I know Fayaadh didn’t do it on purpose,” Trenton Williams, a Mastery Charter football captain, told the Inquirer. “I know it was an accident. That’s his twin. His twin would never do that. They had much love for each other. I just cried my eyes out.”

Fayaadh Gillard is currently out on bail, with the Inquirer citing a court source claiming that the murder charge against Fayaadh Gillard will likely be downgraded to third degree murder or third degree manslaughter, both of which allow for those charged to post bail.