UVALDE, TX – Friday marked a bittersweet day for nearly 300 Uvalde High School seniors, as they turned their tassels in celebration of their accomplishments, while mourning the 19 elementary school students who will never walk on that stage.

What You Need To Know

  • Nearly 300 Uvalde High School seniors just received their diplomas, after a monthlong postponement of the graduation ceremony

  • Friday’s ceremony was originally set to happen May 27, just days after the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas

  • 21 placards were placed at the commencement in honor of the 19 elementary school students and two teachers killed at Robb Elementary on May 24

One month ago, a former student drove to Robb Elementary School and gunned down the children and two teachers, marking the deadliest school shooting since the one at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012.

May 24, 2022, forever changed the small Texas town and sparked a nationwide outcry for change and stronger security at schools in the United States.

Spectrum News 1 spoke with one of the graduating Uvalde seniors, Alyssa Gonzalez, the day after their ceremony was postponed. She said she had just visited Robb Elementary with her fellow seniors one day before the shooting.

“Seeing all their little smiles and everything, their little signs, and a few of my friends got signs from them. I know that’s definitely something they’re going to cherish,” Gonzalez said.

“I just keep thinking about how I would take the place of all the children if I could. And I know that wouldn’t be fair to my parents, but they didn’t deserve it,” Gonzalez said. “I would take the place of all of them, all the teachers, all the kids, just to give them a slice of what I’ve lived through and what I experienced. I would do it in a heartbeat.” 

Gonzalez said she visited the home of one of the victims, 10-year-old Xavier Lopez, the night of the shooting.

“Just being like with the family of Xavier Lopez, I could feel the pain, and just seeing her cry for him. It was really hard being there,” Gonzalez said.

Her father flew in from California the day the shooting happened, initially planning to celebrate his daughter’s graduation.

“I really don’t express my feelings a lot, but can’t help it,” he said. “A lot of children passed away. That’s a lot of people that just… that are going to suffer through this, that will be affected by this, and I’m not from here, but that really frightens me.” 

Gonzalez said she hopes changes will be made, so no community will ever need to fear sending their kids to school again.

“I just don’t want it to happen again. I don’t want my family to have to worry about that happening again,” she said. “Especially in this town where it’s supposed to be a safe haven and a little retirement area from my grandparents and everything.”

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At the time of the interview, Gonzalez told Spectrum News 1 she had already enlisted in the Air Force, and her basic training was scheduled for June, effectively missing the rescheduled graduation ceremony.

But she said the ceremony doesn’t matter to her anymore.