A Selma family is mourning the loss of their 21-year-old daughter, Yamile Martinez-Andrade, after she was killed in Sacramento’s mass shooting early Sunday morning.
Yamile’s mother, Teresa Andrade, told Channel 21 News Univision in an interview that she felt like her life ended, too.
“My daughter has died, but I have not, but it’s almost like I died, too, because the pain I feel is something that I think I will never get over,” Andrade told Univision’s Channel 21 news reporter Sharabeth Galindo.
Selma Mother of Shooting Victim is Devastated
Andrade said that she felt something bad had happened after Martinez-Andrade stopped answering her text messages.
It wasn’t until Sunday at 6 p.m. that Yami’s mom received a message from Yami’s friend who had attended a concert with Yami.
“I heard her crying and I told her to tell me what happened and that’s when she said that Yami was shot and I asked her how she was doing, but she didn’t tell me if she was dead or not,” said Andrade. “She just told me that something bad had happened, but she already knew that Yami was dead.”
Yamile’s stepfather, Frank Gonzalez, told Fox 26 News that they received a lot of information by word of mouth.
“That was the hardest thing about this,” said Gonzalez. “We started calling hospitals and the PD and really no response.”
Yamile’s mom has many questions about what happened. She says that no one reached out to officially let her know that her daughter was dead.
“I don’t know how much time she was there for, I don’t know how she spent the last minutes of her life. I didn’t know anything,” said Andrade.
The last thing Andrade was able to find out about the night’s events is that after attending a Tyler the Creator concert, Yamile and her friend headed downtown to a bar for drinks.
Andrade takes comfort in knowing that her daughter was enjoying the last moments of life doing what she loved — attending concerts and music festivals.
“But I know that in her last moments she was happy because she was happy to be at that concert that she really wanted to go to and I know because in that last video she looks very happy,” said Andrade, who shared the last video from her daughter.
Related Story: Second Man Arrested on Gun Charges in Sacramento Mass Shooting
Yamile Was Hardworking, Responsible Young Woman
Family members of the victim describe Yamile as hardworking and responsible.
Gonzalez, shared that Yamile was a good daughter and loved her mom and her brothers. They were her world, he added.
“Other than that, her friends that she went to concerts with. She wasn’t out there looking for trouble or anything like that,” said Gonzalez. “She just wanted to go to the concerts … she was just like everybody else and it’s just too bad.”
Yamile worked Monday through Friday with her older brother doing landscape work. Other than work and family, music was her big focus.
Four months ago, Yami shared a photo of her and her friends on her Facebook page attending an Audiotistic music festival in 2021.
Fundraising Efforts to Help with Funeral Expenses
Yamile’s family is asking the community to help cover funeral expenses.
A GoFundMe account has been created by Yamile’s aunt, Jenifer Llamas. The family is hoping to raise $18,000 and as of Tuesday morning, with help from the community, the family has raised $6,350. You can donate here.
Other friends and family have stepped up to help the family fundraise by selling treats. Angela Marie shared that treatsbyjayda will be selling baked goods this Saturday at 1 p.m. You can message her on her Instagram page to put an order in.
Another Selma woman and friend of Yami’s, Esmeralda Pimentel, will sell fresh fruit and Mexican sweet drinks to help support the family on Saturday and Sunday. The address of the sales will be shared on the days of the event.
