Next week, Rose Hernandez would have worn Invader blue. She would have sung the school’s alma mater. She would have turned her tassel.
On Wednesday, roses lay in a place where students can now grieve a life cut short.
Friends and family gathered in the courtyard at West Scranton High School to remember Rose and unveil a statue in her memory — and other students gone too soon.
“It's a very bittersweet moment,” said junior Allison Juarez, one of Rose’s closest friends. “It'll be nice knowing that she's still here with us in a way, not maybe physically, but it's a nice way to just look and see that in memory of her.”
Dealing with grief
Rose wanted to travel after graduation. She hoped to help her dad in his construction business. He wanted her to go to college so she could get ahead.
But Rose died on Dec. 29, after police say she tried to get in the vehicle of her boyfriend, Joseph Garcia, in an alley in the rear of West Locust Street. He sped away, and Rose suffered fatal injuries consistent with being struck by a motor vehicle, according to the arrest affidavit. Garcia faces a charge of involuntary manslaughter and has a pre-trial hearing scheduled for Monday.
Her friends returned to school after winter break — reeling from the absence of the friend who would help anyone and loved to laugh.
“I felt just a wave of sadness, anger,” said Allison, who met Rose at a quinceañera about six years ago and forged an “inseparable” bond. “I couldn't believe it. I refused to believe it. I kept looking at pictures, videos, just to reminisce all the memories we've spent together.”
Junior Janellyn Alonso Perez worked at Marshalls in Dickson City with Rose. They’d sometimes chat while Rose worked in the fitting rooms and sipped on drinks from Starbucks during breaks together.
“I wanted to do something for Rose and her family and her friends to remember her,” Janellyn said.
A rose would soon bloom.
'For our friend Rose'
Janellyn and Allison wanted a place to grieve. They talked to art teacher Ryan Hnat and planted an idea: a memorial in the school courtyard could give anyone a chance to grieve a life lost.
Hnat designed the metal rose sculpture and welding students from the Career Technology Center of Lackawanna County fabricated it.
“I think it's super important to have a place to be able to deal with those emotions,” the teacher said, standing near the flower that towers above him. “It's a work of art. It's just a big rose. When you really get into the sculpture, then you really understand the meaning of the importance.”
On one of the leaves of the rose is the phrase: “Dedicated to all students of WSHS whose time came too early.” Rose’s name is at the base of the stem.
West’s courtyard is surrounded by classrooms on each side.
“Just looking outside, like when someone sees the rose, you want them to remember, ‘Oh, it's for our friend Rose,’” Allison said.
Symbol of life to remain
The fountain trickled in the lush courtyard Wednesday afternoon. Rose’s friends and classmates held bouquets of flowers — and each other.
Her father, Irineo Hernandez, clutched red roses. Her mother, Rosalba Villa, hugged a teddy bear wearing a cap and gown.
Hernandez said he always stressed the importance of education to Rose and his two sons. Rose could speak and understand both Spanish and English — a skill her father believed would take her far. She always volunteered to translate for anyone who needed it.
“Every day I pushed her … I said you have to keep on, keep going to school, because the life is not easy,” he said.
Rose should have been preparing to walk across the stage next week. She should be picking up her cap and gown and making plans for life after graduation.
Instead, under bright blue skies, Principal Renee Stevens presented Rose’s diploma to her family. Her father held it tight to his chest.
One by one, friends and family placed roses at the base of the memorial. Long after Rose’s friends have graduated, a symbol of her life will remain.
“That's amazing. That's beautiful,” Hernandez said. “My heart too is gonna be here. It’s going to be here for the rest of my life.”
