Ivan Gomez
Age 12
Firebaugh, California
The Mendota Cobras lose a cornerback
He was a star on the Mendota Cobras youth football team, playing both tight end and cornerback. He “always cheered his teammates on,” his coach said.
The seventh-grader at Mendota Junior High School was a great kid on and off the field. He was happy and energetic and was well-liked at school. “It wasn’t just on the field,” he coach said. “He really had an impact on everyone.”
He and his friend were alone when they got ahold of a .25 caliber handgun. On Feb. 3, Ivan Gomez, 12, died of an accidental gunshot wound in Firebaugh, California.
