Family coping after girl, 17, run down

McALLEN — The family of a slain 17-year-old girl is devastated and distraught, but they are focusing on celebrating her life instead of dwelling on the tragic circumstances surrounding her death. 

Norma Rivas, 47, and her husband John Stegall, 63, opened the doors of their McAllen home Wednesday morning to provide some insight into the life of Jillilah Rivas.

Norma Rivas and the girl’s stepfather spoke about the teen’s love for life, infectious smile and aspirations, but declined to comment on their daughter’s relationship with Sergio Osvaldo Garcia, the 23-year-old boyfriend accused of killing her early Sunday morning.

Garcia intentionally struck the 17-year-old with a vehicle as she walked away from a party where the couple had just finished arguing, Hidalgo County sheriff’s deputies said.

The teen was on the phone with her mother as she walked along a dirt shoulder on Mile 4 when the line went dead, investigators said. They believe that was the moment Garcia drove his red Ford Expedition straight into Jillilah Rivas. 

What was said during that last telephone call with her daughter is something that Norma Rivas was not prepared to talk about and respectfully declined to do so. 

“Yes, we’re very sad, but we’re concentrating on Jillilah’s life,” Stegall said. “We want to keep it positive.”

The senior at Elsa High School was scheduled to graduate in May, they said. She dreamed of becoming a registered nurse.

“She had a lot of potential and was really excited about enrolling in college,” a soft-spoken Norma Rivas said.  

A seven-minute video compiled by Jillilah’s best friend honors the smiling girl with pictures of key moments in her life. It chronicles school field trips, Halloween costumes, trips to the beach and a family vacation to Disneyland.

“Right there, she’s at her friend’s quinceañera,” Norma Rivas said as the photographs flashed to the sound of a ukulele playing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”

“She loved life,” her mother said. “She was special and unique.”

The video will be shown at her funeral service today, Jillilah’s mother said.

The teen’s three sisters continue to cope with the loss. Jillilah was the second-oldest.

“They’re just distraught, really,” their mother said. “(They’re) very sad that they won’t be able to be with her or do things with her.”

The couple urged parents and teens to keep an open line of communication.

“It’s tough being a teenager — we’ve all been through that — and it’s also tough being a parent,” Stegall said.

Jillilah, however, was not one to cause problems. She kept good grades and lived a well-rounded life, they said.

“She impacted a lot of lives. She brought a lot of happy memories and she will never be forgotten,” Jillilah’s mother said. “I just wished it would’ve happened differently — that she would’ve gone to a neighbor or somebody — but I can’t go back in time. 

“Things happen for a reason, and I guess we have to believe in the Lord and just remember her.” 

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Naxiely Lopez covers law enforcement and general assignments for The Monitor. She can be reached at naxil@themonitor.com and (956) 683-4434.

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