We mourn the victims and lift up the survivors of the Uvalde, Texas, massacre
Greetings, ladies and gentlemen:
Over the weekend, 30-plus relatives of mine convened in Nashville for our first family reunion in more than 30 years.
The activities ranged from outdoor hikes at a state park to a scavenger hunt in downtown and from a talent show to a pandemic-delayed Quince/Sweet 16 celebration.
We played, we hugged, we enjoyed music together and we got to know each other better. The last time, so few of us were married and my siblings, cousins and I were the kids. We are children no longer. A new generation joined us this time.
I share this because top-of-mind for many of us at the reunion was the massacre last week of 19 children and two teachers in their classroom at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
Our family grieved like so many others, and we felt an urgency to appreciate each other and realize that we do not know how much time we have to enjoy those important moments of life.
In this week's newsletter, I am sharing stories, commentary and other features from the USA TODAY Network about the events in Uvalde so that we do not simply forget.
Rafael Carranza, reporter for The Arizona Republic, writes about mourners flocking to the town square.
Louie Villalobos of the USA TODAY Opinion team calls on parents to be angry about the response from the authorities.
Columnist Connie Schulz speaks as a mother about how parents are struggling to say goodbye to their children in the wake of the tragedy.
Sarah Ann Dueñas, reporter for The Austin American Statesman, explains how the public can help Uvalde.
Readers wrote letters mourning the loss of the victims, expressing anger, calling for action from the government and warning fellow citizens not to let this tragedy happen over and over again.
For the readers of this newsletter, it hits home that the town and the school were majority Latino. But regardless of their background, the pain of loss is still very real, and the grief will not go away when the news cycle moves on to another big story.
That said, I am proud of the work my colleagues have done to shine light on the tragedy, bring forth stories of the deceased and surviving loved ones, and try to help people cope.
And please remember to embrace and appreciate your loved ones. I will cherish every memory from this past weekend.
Share your cuento: Be a Latino storyteller
Finally, I am pleased to announce that we are partnering with Plaza Mariachi to put on Latino Tennessee Storytellers program on Thursday, Oct. 13, at 7 p.m. If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else to volunteer to share a 10- to 12-minute story that evening, email me your name, contact information and story idea to dplazas@tennessean.com.
Happy week! ¡Muchas gracias!
David Plazas is the director of opinion and engagement for the USA TODAY Network - Tennessee. He is of Colombian and Cuban descent, has studied or worked in several Spanish-speaking countries, and was the founding editor of Gaceta Tropical in Southwest Florida. He has lived in Tennessee since 2014. Call him at (615) 259-8063, email him at dplazas@tennessean.com or tweet to him at @davidplazas.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: We grieve for the victims and lift up survivors of the Uvalde massacre
