Family remembering Lubbock man killed in shooting says gun violence needs to stop

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - A Lubbock family held a balloon release to remember their loved one, 24-year-old Gomesindo Perez, who was killed in a shooting on Sunday morning.

There were gold and black balloons in the sky Thursday night to honor Perez. His family says the color had a special meaning for him.

“That was his color,” the mother of his children, April Martinez, said. “He lived and breathed gold and black.”

Perez was killed in a shooting on 45th Street and Raleigh Avenue on Sunday around 2:30 a.m.

PREVIOUS STORY: 1 killed in Central Lubbock shooting

Martinez says he was a family man.

“He was a good dad, a great friend, a great uncle, great nephew, great grandson,” Martinez said.

The family gathered Thursday to release the balloons, saying they will carry on his legacy. Among those at the release was one-year-old Maria Perez who they call Delilah. Delilah is not the only child Perez had with Martinez; he had twin sons who are three months old. Martinez says this is something she never expected to go through.

“Angry - I mean, what else do you feel when your loved one’s gone, especially someone you had kids with,” Martinez said.

Police say there was a fight in the home prior to the shooting.

Martinez says guns are not the answer.

“Stop the gun violence,” Martinez said. “We have gun violence in Lubbock all the time, it’s every day.”

She says the family will remember Gomesindo as a ray of sunshine who made everyone’s day brighter.

“The whole room lit up when he was around, his smile lit up the whole world,” Martinez said.

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