The 14 yellow roses that the New Orleans authorities placed as a tribute to the fatal victims of the New Year’s dawn massacre on the famous Bourbon Street have become a place of pilgrimage this Friday, a small sanctuary where residents and tourists go. placing symbolic tributes—necklaces with carnival colors; candles; bouquets of flowers; improvised crosses—to those killed and the more than 30 injured in the massive attack perpetrated by former soldier Shamsud-Din Jabbar, with a rented van in which he was carrying an Islamic State (ISIS) flag, in a jihadist-inspired attack, according to FBI investigations. The White House has announced that President Joe Biden will travel to the city next Monday to meet with survivors and families of the victims and pay tribute to those who died.
Each of the 14 roses represents a life lost. Until now, the authorities have not made public an official list with the names of the deceased, but some relatives have confirmed the death of their loved ones on social networks or to the media. Together, they make up a small sample of American society: a single mother who had just finished moving to a better apartment, a wisecracking computer scientist, a college sports star, a family man who had only gone there at the insistence of another relative. …
This is what is known about some of them.
Nicole Perez27 years old. This single mother of a four-year-old boy had just received a promotion at her job. After starting out as a waitress at a grocery and sandwich store, she was in charge of the establishment on the outskirts of New Orleans. The professional improvement had allowed him to rent a larger apartment, which he had just moved into with his son Melo. It was not uncommon for him to take the little boy to work, and he took advantage of his free time there to read him stories and teach him the alphabet and numbers.
He was dreaming, according to what his boss and friend, Kimberly Usher-Fall, told the city newspaper. Times-Picayune, with becoming the owner of her own company. On New Year’s Eve I had gone out with some friends to celebrate the arrival of 2025 on Bourbon Street; Jabbar’s truck hit her squarely. “She was an excellent mother. He learned quickly. “I just wanted to be successful,” says Usher-Fall.
Ni’kyra Cheyenne Dedeaux18 years old. Originally from the State of Mississippi, Dedeaux was about to begin her university studies in Nursing. At her campus, Blue Ridge, they were waiting for her on January 13 to begin her career, in which she was going to follow in the footsteps of her mother and grandmother. “He was very popular and very intelligent, he had many friends,” his mother, Melissa, explained to USA Today.
On New Year’s Eve he had gone out by car without his parents’ permission, with a cousin and a friend to celebrate in New Orleans. “When your parents tell you not to go somewhere, listen to them,” Melissa Dedeaux wrote on her Facebook account just hours after the event on Bourbon Street. “This was an act of terrorism and my baby is no longer there… I have lost my baby, please pray for me and my family.”
Reggie Hunter37 years old. This warehouse manager, resident of Baton Rouge – the second largest city in Louisiana – and father of two children, a lover of fashion, who thought it was unthinkable to go out if he wasn’t in good shape, decided to go to New Orleans last hour, to accompany one of his cousins.
His cousin, Kevin Ball, was hit by the truck and is recovering from his injuries at a hospital. He was run over and died from internal injuries. “He was the life of the parties,” his cousin tells NewsNation. “He had a fabulous sense of humor, he made everyone laugh.”
Martin “Tiger” Beech27 years old. He shined in everything he did. He had successfully graduated from his Catholic high school and Princeton University recruited him for its football team. Graduated from Princeton, he had signed for a financial company in New York, where he had settled. Originally from southern Louisiana, he was spending these holidays in New Orleans to visit his family.
“We live in a relatively small community, where not many people leave, although quite a few do,” his youth coach, Marty Cannon, told the AP agency. “It doesn’t surprise me that Tiger left South Louisiana and got a great education in a place like Princeton, and built a community there and built up successes. “He was that kind of person.”
Matthew Tenedorio25 years old. “He was starting his life. He had his dream job,” his mother, Cathy Tenedorio, told NBC News. Tenedorio worked as an audiovisual technician at the Superdome, the New Orleans football stadium that city residents consider one of the crown jewels of their “Big Easy.” “He was a wonderful boy,” his father said. “He loved people. He loved animals. He always had a smile on his face. “I had so many friends!”
The family had spent New Year’s Eve together. “We had dinner and set off fireworks, and we laughed and hugged, telling each other how much we all loved each other,” his mother recalled. She tried to dissuade him from going to the center of the city, it seemed dangerous to her. But “they don’t think about the risk,” he lamented.
Kareem Badawi18 years old. This Palestinian-American freshman at the University of Alabama had returned to his hometown of Baton Rouge to spend the holidays with his family. “With great sadness, but with a heart in accordance with Allah’s decision, I announce the death of my son Kareem in an accident in New Orleans,” his father wrote on his Facebook account on January 1.
