Immokalee community honors victims of SR 82 crash

IMMOKALEE, Fla.- Immokalee High School found a special way to honor the victims of a recent deadly crash on State Road 82.

Fans at the Immokalee High School freshman football game came to support two freshman football players who lost their cousins in the tragic car accident. The game began with a moment of silence and a prayer.

“Love your family, because you never know when’s the last time you’ll see them,” said Cristian Guerrero, Alex Garcia’s cousin.

Guerrero and his cousin Joshua Ortega lost a man they looked up to. Their cousin Alex Garcia and his daughter Alexis both died in a head-on collision along State Road 82.

“We’re going to show tribute, get them away from all the hard things they are going through right now, because football to this town is a getaway,” said David Flores, freshman football coach.

Flores says football was Garcia’s passion, he played on Immokalee football field years ago.

“He always loved football and he always cared about Immokalee football so we want to play for him,” said Ortega.

Thursday night, the legacy of the victims lived on as players taped their initials onto the team’s jerseys.

“They’re our family so when one goes down, we’re all going down. When one’s feeling pain, we all feel pain with them,” said Flores.

Students raised money to give back to the Garcia family. Garcia’s fiancee, Jennifer Garza, and son Jeremiah were both badly injured in the crash. The 10-year-old remains in critical condition as of Thursday night.