Two of the three children killed in a mass shooting at the Allen Premium Outlets on Saturday have been identified as sisters from Sachse who attended Wylie's Cox Elementary School.
The school district sent a letter to parents confirming that 11-year-old fourth-grader Daniela Mendoza and her 8-year-old sister second-grader Sofia Mendoza were killed in the outburst of gunfire directed at families shopping at the outdoor mall.
The district said the girls' mother, Ilda Mendoza, was also injured in the attack and remained hospitalized in critical condition Monday.
Please pray for our now broken family. The girls have left a void that nothing in the world could ever fill. Please pray for their mom, my sister, and her broken heart.
Anabel del Angel, aunt to the girls and sister to their mother
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“Words cannot express the sadness we feel as we grieve the loss of our students. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Mendoza family, the families of the victims, and all those affected by this senseless tragedy,” said Wylie ISD Superintendent David Vinson.
Vinson ended his letter writing, “Daniela and Sofia will not be forgotten. Hug your kids, and tell them you love them.”
The girls were remembered as "rays of sunshine," and "the kindest, most thoughtful students with smiles that could light up any room," Cox Elementary School Principal Krista Wilson said in a letter to parents.
Parents at the elementary school told NBC 5 they noticed more security on Monday.
"The police have been checking on everything," said Joan Blue, whose son is a student at the school. "I know we had two extra police officers at the school today. My son is in kindergarten, and I had to explain to him that a second grader and a fourth grader were murdered from his school. He said, 'Why are they shooting the children?' So to me, having to explain to kids that their lives are constantly in jeopardy because people have guns, that should not, is it's unfathomable."
Blue is also a neighbor of the Mendozas and has been to their garage sales and seen Ilda walk her two daughters to school.
"She just seemed like a mom just like me," Blue said.
For Halloween, she said the Mendozas would have a screen playing movies while another neighbor would serve snacks and drinks.
"Whenever you would round the corner right by their house, you'd get like a hot dog, a treat and chips. And watch a movie," Blue said.
A whole bunch of the neighbors are just completely devastated. It's such a small community. Everybody knows everybody. So, it's just devastating.
Joan Blue, neighbor to the Mendozas
Wylie Elite Cheer posted on Facebook that the sisters took classes at the gym and encouraged people to wear the girls' favorite color of yellow this week to honor their memory.
Jackie Sloan and her daughter both showed up to Monday's class wearing yellow. "We were told that their favorite colors were yellow," Sloan said.
Sloan did not personally know the Mendoza sisters, however, she said Wylie Elite is a tight-knit group.
"We've been a part of this family for about a year now, and she's in a tumbling level one," Sloan said. "We love this facility, and I'm, just heartbroken with what happened."
Sloan's daughter is in first grade. Like many parents, she has struggled with how to share the news with her child.
"We're doing the best that we can. It's all unexpected and scary," Sloan said. "It's one of those things I feel like I'm going to have to tell her it's the real world, unfortunately, that we live in. So, I'll keep it censored as much as I can for her. But she's going to have to know."
With the outpouring of support for the victims of the mass shooting at the Allen Premium Outlets, GoFundMe has launched a centralized hub for all verified fundraisers related to the shooting. The online fundraising platform said it was working around the clock to make sure that all funds donated go directly to survivors or the families of victims.
Associated Press writers Jamie Stengle, Vanessa A. Alvarez and Rebecca Reynolds contributed to this report.
