CISD memorializes youngest victim of mass shooting
Wilson Garcia, the father of Daniel Guzman, who was one of five victims in a mass shooting last April, unveils a bench memorializing him at Northside Elementary. Photo by Geovanni De Hoyos
CLEVELAND — Francisco Oropeza took the world by storm last spring, accused of five brutal murders and a manhunt on the outskirts of Cleveland. He now awaits trial for those killings, and Cleveland ISD has memorialized the youngest victim.
Daniel Lazo Guzman, 9, attended Northside Elementary, was killed alongside his mother, Sonia Argentina Guzman, 25, Jose Jonathan Casarez, 18, Julisa
Wilson Garcia, the father of Daniel Guzman, who was one of five victims in a mass shooting last April, unveils a bench memorializing him at Northside Elementary. Wilson Garcia, the father of Daniel Guzman, who was one of five victims in a mass shooting last April, unveils a bench memorializing him at Northside Elementary.
Molina Rivera, 31, and Diana Velazquez Alvarado, 21.
The district honored his life and memory by erecting a bench, which will be placed against the library wall.
“ I remember walking down the hallways with my son and my wife,” said Guzman’s father, Wilson Garcia, via a translator. “He was excited to go to school.”
Guzman’s family, community supporters, students, and school officials were on hand Monday morning to remember Guzman, whom CISD Superintendent Stephen McCanless called one of the district’s “shining stars.”
“ The life and memory of Daniel Lazo Guzman should not be forgotten,” said Mccanless.
McCanless spoke to The Vindicator about the victims and, how they each brought their own uniqueness to the community and how they will be remembered, especially by those who loved them.
The bench will be a way for Guzman to be memorialized at the school he loved attending and allow future students to remember him.
“ Time will help mend the pain from the loss, but this bench will forever remind us of the image of Daniel’s smiling face at Northside Elementary,” said McCanless.
Guzman and his family are still seeking justice for the dastardly act that occurred, and prosecutors hope to bring them some peace as Oropeza is expected back in court on Thursday, Dec. 7.