ELK GROVE, Calif. — Family and friends came together in Elk Grove to remember a teen shot and killed on the Fourth of July holiday in south Sacramento.
Family members say 19-year-old Mactavious Garren was loved and enjoyed every aspect of life. However, another deadly shooting in the region has left this family trying to find answers.
"Anytime I might have been going through something mentally, he was always the person that I would just lay down and I would just cry with him," said Michael Garren, Mactavious’ older brother.
Garren may not have had a well-known name, but his impact was well-known to the family and friends gathered for a vigil at the Hal Bartholomew Sports Park.
“He was a sponge for positivity, anything that he viewed as something positive to pursue, he took action," said Eli, Mactavious’ friend.
"If you had a bad day, like Mac come around, he immediately changed your day,” said Isaiah, Mactavious’ friend."
Friends and family honored the 19-year-old roughly 10 miles away from where his life was taken.
Early afternoon on July 4, the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office says after receiving a call, they responded to a shooting at an apartment complex in a south Sacramento neighborhood. One person was killed, and another sent to the hospital.
"I never thought I'd have two nephews, one deceased and one in the hospital," said Rashawn Fulcher, Mactavious’ uncle.
Fulcher says it is hard to comprehend that senseless gun violence has hit so close to home.
"You feel like you do a good job preparing them and telling them that,” said Fulcher. “This is real. This is not a video game. And yet, still, we are here."
Fulcher is a Captain with Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District and knows all too well about responding to tragedies. But he hopes other people can use their pain as a source of change.
"This is not a video game,” said Fulcher. "You don’t get rebirthed back into life. It’s not like you wake up tomorrow, and you realize this is a music video. This is real, and these consequences are real."
The sheriff's office has not released any suspect information or a motive for the shooting.
The family has a GoFundMe page set up to help with the cost of the funeral.
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