America continues to grieve for the young lives lost due to a recent mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in the small city of Uvalde, Texas. Some of the victims' parents share their heartbreaking stories of the tragic incident.
Among them was Angel Garza. He was interviewed by broadcast journalist Anderson Cooper live on CNN late Wednesday while standing outside the scene of Texas Elementary School Shooting , weeping and holding her daughter Amerie's portrait.
Angel said Amerie had just celebrated her 10th birthday and had received a new cell phone, which she used to try to call the police as Salvador Ramos, 18, burst into the school equipped with a legally bought AR-15 rifle, which he used to shoot fourth-grade students and their teachers.
Garza said that his daughter was just trying to call authorities during the incident-- a heroic deed despite her young age.
"I just want people to know that she died trying to save her classmates. She just wanted to save everyone," Garza noted.
Loner Gunman Warned on Facebook
Minutes before the horror, the gunman warned about the shooting on Facebook, per ABC News. A spokesperson for Meta said on Wednesday Ramos sent "private one-to-one" messages, which were discovered following the tragedy.
According to Texas Governor Greg Abbott, the gunman sent three messages on the social media platform 30 minutes before the shooting saying: "I'm going to shoot my grandmother," "I shot my grandmother" and "I'm going to shoot an elementary school."
The suspect, according to Abbott, was a high school dropout. Officials have not yet determined the suspect's criminal past, but Abbott speculated that he may have had a juvenile record, which has yet to be verified.
According to Abbott, the Texas school shooter had no known mental health issues. The ATF disclosed Ramos bought his guns on May 17 and May 20.
The suspect's mother Adriana Reyes was "surprised" to learn that her son committed such a horrific killing spree, as per a report from Daily Mail. She admitted that Ramos was a loner who kept things to himself and "didn't have many friends". However, she denied allegations that they had a toxic relationship.
Ramos' grandfather, Rolando Reyes, said he was clueless that Ramos had purchased firearms.
"My son wasn't a violent person. I'm surprised by what he did," the 74-year-old said. He offered prayers for the bereaved families.
'I pray for those families. I'm praying for all of those innocent children, yes I am. They [the children] had no part in this."
Principals With Gun Violence Experience Offer Help
Meanwhile, a network of educational leaders who experienced gun violence offered help to the victims at Robb Elementary School.
According to CNN, around 29 members of the Principal Recovery Network have been involved in shootings in their community, including Frank DeAngelis, who was the principal of Columbine High School in Colorado in 1999 when two gunmen killed 13 people on campus.
"So, we reach out and we have guides just to help them wherever we can. And it's not a one-time phone call," DeAngelis said of their organization, which "assists schools during recovery and advocate for national school safety enhancements and violence prevention programs" according to its website.
Related Article: President Joe Biden Addresses the Nation After Deadly Texas Shooting That Kills 14 Students; VP, Officials Condemn the 'Horrific' Incident
