SAN ANTONIO – Days have passed, but devastation on the West Side is still community-wide one week after the death of a 14-year-old boy.
Simon Cuevas III was shot and killed last Wednesday on his way home from school. His death has sparked a bigger conversation about youth gun violence.
“I’ve lost others close to me in the same way,” Tyler Wyckoff said.
Wyckoff and Lloyd Patterson are both a part of Urban Apostles. The group is dedicated to helping teenagers impacted by the juvenile justice system. Wyckoff is now on the other side.
“When I was sitting in the cell, I was thinking, this isn’t where I want to be for the rest of my life,” Wyckoff said. “I got ready to get my act together and clean up.”
Patterson said gun violence seems to be getting younger and younger, that’s why he’s calling on the community for accountability.
“Violence usually comes as we know in cycles,” Patterson said. “We shouldn’t venture away from the hard conversations with our young people or our children about the cost of survival out there on the streets.”
Rosemary Williams, the executive director of Big Mama Safe House, is trying to have a similar conversation.
On Thursday night, Faces Not Forgotten, the Oblates School of Theology, No Weapon 1 Life Empowerment Foundation and Village of Mothers teamed up for its annual gun violence memorial and prevention event. Big Mama Safe House, University Hospital, Mom’s Demand Action, and the Be Smart programs all joined this year.
“We want to be able to say we will remember this person’s face and their name,” Williams said.
