Neuqua Valley High School plans to hold a memorial service for two of its graduates who were killed at Friday’s Astroworld Music Festival in Houston, according to a Daily Herald report.
The two victims were 21-year-old Franco Patino and 20-year-old Jacob Jurinek; two best friends who traveled to the Houston festival to celebrate Jurinek’s upcoming 21st birthday.
What Happened
The two were killed by a crowd surge at the concert, where thousands of fans compressed toward the front of the stage. The incident killed eight people, and sent 25 to the hospital.
Funeral arrangements for Patino and Jurinek have not yet been finalized, the Daily Herald said.
Memorial Information Forthcoming
According to the Daily Herald, Neuqua Principal Lance Fuhrer said in a letter to families Tuesday that once individual services for the two victims occur, “we will invite students, staff, and alumni to honor the friendship of Franco and Jacob with a shared memorial service at our school.”
The school has not yet announced a date for the memorial service.
“National tragedies rarely hit our community like they did this past weekend,” Fuhrer said. “This hits home in many ways: Young people with potential, a friendship forged at our school, advancing in their studies in college, attending a concert, and celebrating a birthday… These are all things with which we can identify.”
Jurinek was a junior at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, and a 2019 graduate from Neuqua Valley High School. Patino was a junior at the University of Dayton, and a 2018 Neuqua Valley graduate.
Naperville News 17’s Casey Flanagan reports.
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