Latest news with #SaginawArtsandSciencesAcademy
Daily Mail
25-04-2025
- Daily Mail
Tragic reason Michigan man's body washed up on shore of spring break hotspot
A disturbing video captured the moment the remains of a heroic 20-year-old Michigan young man washed up on a popular beach in Cancún. The footage showed Quintana Roo Civil Protection workers carrying the body of Alejandro González on the shores of Chacmool Beach on Wednesday. González was with a group of friends to the tourist hotspot when he disappeared on Sunday evening. The College of Creative Studies student ran into the water after he saw one of his friends struggling to stay afloat as she was being dragged by a current. González was able to save the woman but was swept further into the Caribbean Sea and was not seen again. 'We held out hope, and prayed for a miracle,' González's mother, Renee González, wrote in a heartbreaking post on Facebook. 'While the outcome wasn't what we wanted, God did answer our prayers. Alejandro's body has been found, Matt and I are going to be able to bring our baby home.' The Facebook post also featured the last picture that was taken of Alejandro moments before his disappearance. 'The smile on his face reminds me how happy he was to be with his friends and spending time somewhere new,' Renee wrote. 'It's good to know he was so happy.' The heartbroken mother lauded her son's courageous decision to risk his own life to save his friend, who was among the former Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy classmates on his spring break trip to the Mexican resort city. 'That is who Alejandro was, he put others above himself always,' Renee told ABC affiliate WJRT. 'He loved his friends so much that the reason he's not here is because he was trying to save one of them. She got pulled out, and he wanted to help make sure she made it back to shore, and she made it, and he didn't.' Alejandro worked as a barista at Sips 476, a coffee shop in Saginaw. 'He is an absolute hero,' his godmother, Melissa Pocock, said. 'The Bible says that there's no greater love than a man lay down his life for another, and that's what he did,' said Pocock. Renee, who set up a GoFundMe account, had been planning on traveling to Mexico before authorities located Alejandro's body and will now wait for her son's remains to be flown back to the United States. 'Thank you all again for all the love and support. We are going to continue to accept donations, while it looks like Matt and I won't be going to Mexico,' she said. 'We are going to need help with the expense to bring him home, and all of the expenses that come with a situation like this.' The fundraiser has garnered nearly $10,000 toward its $15,000 goal as of Friday afternoon.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Michigan Student's Mom Shares Chilling Final Photo of Him Posing by Ocean Before He Drowned in a Riptide
The body of Alejandro Gonzalez was found after he went swimming with friends in Cancun, Mexico, on Sunday, April 20 The 20-year-old died after trying to rescue a friend from a riptide Alejandro was a junior at College of Creative Studies in Detroit and a graduate from Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy A student from Michigan has died after attempting to rescue a friend from a riptide in Mexico. According to Michigan Live, 20-year-old College of Creative Studies in Detroit junior, Alejandro Gonzalez, had been missing after swimming in Cancun with high school friends on Sunday, April 20. After helping save a pal who was pulled away by a riptide, Alejandro was swept away by the strong current. Per the outlet, his family was told by officials on Wednesday, April 23, that they had found his body. 'We held out hope, and prayed for a miracle. While the outcome wasn't what we wanted, God did answer our prayers,' Alejandro's mother Renee Gonzalez, said on Facebook on Wednesday. 'Alejandro's body has been found, Matt and I are going to be able to bring our baby home.' PEOPLE has contacted the Cancun Police and the College of Creative Studies for comment. Related: West Virginia Father's Body Pulled from Lake After He Rescued His Son: 'Terrible Tragedy' Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. She added, 'Thank you all again for all the love and support. We are going to continue to accept donations, while it looks like Matt and I won't be going to Mexico, we are going to need help with the expense to bring him home, and all of the expenses that come with a situation like this.' Renee also shared a photo of the Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy graduate posing by the water moments before his death. In the snap, the young man appeared in good spirits as he smiled and held two thumbs up. 'The picture is from the evening he went into the water, the smile on his face reminds me how happy he was to be with his friends and spending time somewhere new,' Renee wrote. 'It's good to know he was so happy.' Related: Missing Mother Found Dead After Jumping into California River to Rescue Daughter According to a GoFundMe page set up for the artist's family, Alejandro was 'a talented artist as well as a wonderful friend.' 'He lights up a room and is always up to a new project,' the description read. 'He is caring and fiercely loyal to his friends and family and isn't afraid to try new things. He is smart, has consistently high grades and high performance in everything he does.' So far, $8,158 has been achieved out of the $10,000 GoFundMe goal. The funds will be used to help the Gonzalez family bring Alejandro's body back home. "Along with being a wonderful human being, Alejandro was graduate of Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy, and an artist who painted the cat-themed utility box mural shown in the pictures for The Great Mural Project in 2023,' Riverfront Saginaw wrote in a Facebook post of their former student. Read the original article on People
New York Post
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Michigan art student drowns rescuing friend from riptide during Cancun vacation — posted photo by water night he died
A Michigan art student on vacation in Mexico died during a daring rescue attempt to save his friend from a deadly riptide off the coast of Cancun on Easter. Alejandro Gonzalez, 20, was pulled out to sea by a strong current while swimming with a group of friends at around 7:30 p.m. Sunday, his heartbroken mother said. 'We held out hope, and prayed for a miracle. While the outcome wasn't what we wanted, God did answer our prayers,' Renee Gonzalez wrote on Facebook on Wednesday. 'Alejandro's body has been found, (We) are going to be able to bring our baby home.' 5 Alejandro Gonzalez poses for a photo on the beach while on vacation in Cancun, Mexico on April 20, 2025. Facebook/Renee Gonzalez The Saginaw, Mich. native had traveled to the Caribbean getaway with three high school friends before the tragedy occurred. He had posed for a photo at the water's edge the night he died, his mother shared. 'The picture is from the evening he went into the water, the smile on his face reminds me how happy he was to be with his friends and spending time somewhere new. It's good to know he was so happy,' Renee Gonzalez added. The photo captured the smiling artist giving a thumbs up to the camera while standing in the tropical water. Gonzalez was swimming when one of his friends got caught in a riptide and the artist jumped and successfully saved her, but 'was lost in the process,' according to a GoFundMe set up for his family. His body was recovered by officials on Wednesday after a three-day search. 5 Alejandro Gonzalez with his mother, Renee, after graduating from the Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy in June 2022. Renee Gonzalez/Facebook 5 Alejandro poses with a plate of cupcakes, celebrating an anniversary at his work. GoFundMe Gonzalez graduated from the Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy in 2022 and had been working as a barista at a local cafe. He was studying at the College of Creative Studies in Detroit, reported. 'Alejandro is a talented artist as well as a wonderful friend. He lights up a room and is always up to a new project,' Heather Shephard, the fundraiser's creator, said. 'He is caring and fiercely loyal to his friends and family and isn't afraid to try new things. He is smart, has consistently high grades and high performance in everything he does.' 5 The cat-themed utility box mural painted by Gonzalez in the City of Sagniaw. The Great Mural Project/Facebook 5 Alejandro Gonzalez's body was recovered by officials Wednesday. GoFundMe After graduation, Gonzalez lent his artistic skills to his community's 'Great Mural Project' in 2023, decorating a cat-themed utility box mural in the City of Sagniaw. A makeshift memorial was set up underneath the mural to honor the artist along with a donation drive for the local animal shelter in his name. The crowdsourcing project, initially set up to help in the search, is now being used for donations that would fund transportation costs to bring Gonzalez home to his family. 'While it looks like Matt and I won't be going to Mexico, we are going to need help with the expense to bring him home, and all of the expenses that come with a situation like this,' Renee Gonzalez said.
