The mother of a little girl slain in the Texas school shooting works as a writer for the local newspaper and has requested that her late daughter’s obituary be written by her editor.
Kimberly Rubio texted Craig Garnett, owner and publisher of the Uvalde Leader-News, asking if she could write a memorial to her 10-year-old daughter Lexi, who was one of 19 students killed at Robb Elementary School on Tuesday.
Kimberly, according to Garnett, requested, ‘Can I have two pictures?’ According to the publisher, he told Kimberly, she can have a full page.
Earlier in the story, Garnett paid praise to Kimberly, noting that while she was employed as a receptionist, he asked her to seek a position as a reporter with the twice-weekly publication.
‘I said, ‘You know, if you love to read that much, you can write,’ Garnett remarked. And she did not disappoint them.
Kimberly and her husband Felix, a deputy with the Uvalde County Sheriff’s Office, were among the many terrible stories to emerge from Uvalde, Texas, this week. A few time before the shooting, the couple was at the school for an awards ceremony in which their child was named to the honor roll and given the school’s good citizen award.
Felix Rubio, a sworn officer with the Uvalde County Sheriff’s Department, would be back at the school not long after the attack started. The sight of Felix trying to soothe his wife after learning that their little girl had been murdered was broadcast across the world.
Later, in an interview, Felix stated that he was at the school when Ramos was shot by a border patrol agent.
Rachel Monroe of The New Yorker’s reported that she came to the newspaper’s office immediately after employees learnt that Kimberly’s child was among those who died.
Monroe called the newspaper’s mood as “stricken.”
Kimberly got a leadership award from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio in early May 2022. Kimberly received the Alice Franzke Non-Traditional Student Scholarship Award at the school in March 2022.
Kimberly is a history major, according to her biography on the St. Mary’s website. She is regarded as an award-winning journalist, having received recognition from the South Texas Press Association for her work as a journalist and editor for the Uvalde Leader-News.
Kimberly’s Instagram page includes a quotation from author Elizabeth Stone that says, making the choice to have a kid is a monumental one. It is to choose to have your heart wander around outside your body for the rest of your life.
In the aftermath of the incident, Kimberly stated that she was working at the Uvalde Leader-News when she heard on the radio scanner about police action at Robb Elementary School.
Kimberly stated in the same interview that the pair turned down the chance to meet with Texas Governor Greg Abbott. She continued that Lexi doesn’t even like him. It’s not what Lexi would have wanted.
The pair also discussed gun regulation, adding, there’s no justification for an average person to have these sorts of guns. For what purpose? What are you going to use them for? Is it worth it for her child? Who are these kids?
Felix predicted that individuals in his team would go against him since he supported gun reform legislation.
Kimberly posted on Facebook after uploading a photo of her family during the award ceremony that fateful morning, ‘My beautiful, clever, Alexandria Aniyah Rubio was honored today for All-A honor roll. She was also given the Good Citizen Award. We assured her we loved her and would see her after school. We had no clue this was our last farewell.’
My beautiful, smart, Alexandria Aniyah Rubio was recognized today for All-A honor roll. She also received the good…
Posted by Kimberly Mata-Rubio on Tuesday, 24 May 2022
Later, she explained that she believes the parents should have signed their daughter out of school after the awards event. Kimberly added that it wasn’t done intentionally, but it’s still a mistake since she made it, else her child would be at home with her. She dropped her child off at school.
This was reinforced when Kimberly and Felix were questioned about Ramos’ rampage being permitted to proceed for 77 minutes before he was apprehended.
‘I have enough ‘what ifs’ on my end, so I am not interested in reading about someone else’s faults, because I already have to deal with my own,’ Kimberly stated.
She was gentle, lovely, and enjoyed life, her parents previously stated. She was going to be an all-star in softball and had a promising career in both athletics and academics. Please let the world know how much we miss our child.’
In a tearful interview, Felix also told the network, ‘all I can hope is that she’s simply not a number. This is sufficient. Nobody else should have to go through this. We didn’t need to go through this, but we did.’
