SAN ANTONIO — The family of 24-year-old Giovanna Barrera, who was shot and killed outside after skating this week, held a plate sale Saturday to raise money for a funeral they never hoped to have plan.
That’s where her friend and classmate, Jensine Garza, met Barrera’s family for the first time. They would likely have met eventually; Garza had spent the past few months becoming fast friends with Barrera.
“She could’ve been my sister and we would’ve been lifelong friends for sure.” Garza said. “And it was early to be able to feel that way about her.”
Instead, tragedy brought them together.
“She was, like, one-of-a-kind,” said Barrera’s aunt, Jackie Chavez. “She had such a big heart and a pure heart.”
Barrera was killed Wednesday afternoon, just outside her grandmother’s home. Investigators say the murder was over a cell phone.
Modesta Chavez remembers her granddaughter’s last moments vividly.
“I can’t get the memory out of my head, where she waved at me with her phone and she said, ‘I’ll be right there,’” she said.
Modesta Chavez said she went back inside to finish making food and eventually noticed sirens outside. That’s when she realized Barrera was taking a while getting back.
“I was going outside and one of the officers stopped me and said, ‘Ma’am, do not come out here.’ And I said, ‘But I’m looking for my granddaughter.’” she said. “He said, ‘Ma’am, this is a crime scene, you need to step back.’”
Garza arrived with a group of Barrera’s beauty school classmates. She said the young woman’s vibrant personality will leave an impact on all of them.
“She was just a very dynamic person and she will be missed by all of us,” she said.
For Chavez, it is touching to see all the lives her granddaughter has touched.
“They’re all devastated, because this is the person that Giovanna was: A beautiful person," she said. "She touched so many people."
The family is raising money via GoFundMe for funeral expenses.