LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — As a Lexington family grieves following the shooting death of their 16-year-old boy, they are working to make sure his friends heal - continuing his legacy through the power of faith.
Chris Valdez was killed on July 5 in Pine Meadow Park. His niece, 15-year-old Jaqueline Garcia, said it was like losing her best friend.
“I had wished everything was a lie,” she said. “It felt like it wasn't real - like I was dreaming.”
He didn't always show it, but she knows he loved her, she said.
“Everywhere he went he would always protect me,” she said, adding he always was smiling.
Through Jacqueline’s translation, her mother said Christopher was respectful and loving, adding he always spoke the word of god, often bringing his friends to church.
His father said that while they are sad they have to keep going to help their son’s friends.
A group of them gathered at Bethel Spanish Church in Lexington for a therapy session led by their pastor.
While it focused on faith, they also discussed what to do with the feelings they have, said Ligia Carrillo, the pastor’s wife.
“We have to help them,” she said.
Following Christopher’s death, his friends don’t feel safe going out for simple things.
“They're asking themselves who is next, they're asking themselves what is going to happen to us, are we going to live long,’ and that shouldn't happen,” Carrillo said.
The family is also trying to clear Christopher’s name, Jaqueline said. Some people in the community have given him a bad title since his death, she said
He was a good kid who was just with the wrong people at the wrong time, she said.
They are asking anyone with information about the shooting to please contact police.
