- September 3, 2021
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- Posted by: admin
Andre Sandoval, left, smiles with his family in a Christmas photo.
Confused.
That’s how the loved ones of Andre Sandoval feel right now. The 21-year-old Burlington native was killed Saturday outside Angel’s Beauty Salon, 2221 Durand Ave., Mount Pleasant.
Andre Sandoval, 21, was shot and killed outside Angel’s Beauty Salon, 2221 Durand Ave., on Saturday afternoon. Those working inside the salon on Sunday declined to comment.
Police say that a barber at the salon shot Sandoval after Sandoval allegedly didn’t pay for a haircut.
Sandoval had a giving heart. He had been active in his church’s youth group as a teen. Over this past summer, he said he’d come back for one day to help with home improvement projects in the community.
He didn’t come back for one day. He ended up coming to help all seven days in a row. And that was after he had already put in a 4-9 a.m. shift at his “day job” as a dock worker at Dayton Freight.
Andre Sandoval, 21, helps build a porch earlier this summer during a week of service organized by the youth group he once had been a part of: ACTS (Active Catholic Teens In Service) Youth Ministry.
“He had that servant-leadership heart,” said Eloy Contreras, who acted as a mentor for Sandoval as youth pastor for the local Active Catholic Teens In Service (ACTS) Youth Ministry, a collective ministry run through three Catholic churches: St. Patrick, St. Edward and St. Richard. He also has gone on several mission trips with the Archdiocese of Milwaukee.
Sandoval, as a teen, had been part of ACTS and remained an active member at St. Patrick prior to his death; ACTS is the organization that led the home improvement projects Sandoval came back to help with two months ago.
Sandoval’s parents, Lupe and Maria, rarely had to ask him to help with anything. He did it naturally.
Eloy Contreras, left, smiles for a photo with Andre Sandoval.
“He was having a big heart,” Lupe said. “He would reach out to help others; that was his natural most inspiring characteristic … He naturally had it.”
In a Facebook post, Contreras wrote: “This loss really hurts. I’m so glad that I was fortunate enough to have been part of your life and walk along side you on your spiritual journey. Not only as your youth minister or mentor, but as your friend. You were one of the success stories that I loved to brag about.”
Friends said they were shocked when they found out Sandoval was dead.
“He wasn’t related to any gangs, never looked for problems with anyone. A really peaceful guy. That’s why it hurts so much,” said 18-year-old Johnny Aguila, who said that Sandoval “took me under his wing” when the two were in ACTS together.
“He always told me to pursue my goals and dreams. That’s something I’ll always be thankful for,” Aguila said.
Isaac Dombrowski, who was trained by Sandoval when they both were working at Panera Bread four years ago, said he “broke down” after finding out his friend was dead. After a “rough night” Sunday, he said Monday he was doing better.
“I’m keeping my head up. He’d want me to keep moving, keep grinding,” Dombrowski said.
Sandoval was the kind of guy who would call someone to ask for forgiveness over even slight transgressions.
“It would bother him so much to have any type of hurt in his heart,” Maria said.
Lupe added: “I believe in my heart that, knowing my son and how he’s been raised, the things we try to teach him, I know he would’ve forgiven the guy who did this. That’s what we believe. He never wanted to hold any resentment toward anybody.”
Aguila said something similar. “I think he’d forgive the person who killed him. He didn’t hold grudges. A really good person.”
A GoFundMe online fundraiser set up Sunday, one day after Andre Sandoval was killed, has already surpassed its goal of raising $8,000 to cover Sandoval’s family’s funeral fees and other costs. As of noon, Monday, more than $11,000 has been raised.
Go to gofund.me/e5845bcf to donate.
Lupe and Maria found out something was wrong while they were volunteering. They had been working at a festival when another of their children called them. “‘Police are at the house. You guys need to come home.’ They wouldn’t tell us what happened over the phone.”
They rushed home.
Maria said the moment was “terrifying.”
“They told us that he got killed,” Maria said during a phone interview Monday, her voice breaking with sobs. “They couldn’t tell us anything else.”
“This is, like, the third violent death in less than two weeks. This gun violence thing is bad,” said Linda Boyle, co-president of the Racine Interfaith Coalition, which organizes a vigil after every death caused by gun violence in the community.
Statistics from gun violence archive data show that almost 300 children were shot and killed in 2020, which is up 50% from previous years. What is causing this spike and what is being done to protect our children?
On Aug. 13, Rebecca “Becky” Rannow, 41, a beloved local bartender, was discovered in her Edgewood Avenue home dead from multiple gunshot wounds. On Aug. 24, Musa Tawfig Musa, 44, was gunned down near the intersection of LaSalle and English streets. At least two other non-fatal shootings have occurred in Racine since Rannow was killed.
Amid the violence, the Racine Police Department is trying to increase its presence in neighborhoods with high rates of crime and shots fired reports.
Boyle expects a large turnout for a vigil planned for 6 p.m. Wednesday at 2221 Durand Ave., where Sandoval was killed. Loved ones of Sandoval and the faith communities he was part of will be “re-sanctifying of the ground” during the vigil, hosted by RIC, an organization that holds a vigil for everyone killed in Racine.
Tammy Hayward, co-president of the Racine Interfaith Coalition which hosted the vigil for Rebecca “Becky” Rannow, speaks to Rannow’s loved ones on Sunday.
Rev. Yeprem Kelegian of the Armenian Church, 4605 Erie St., speaks during the vigil for Becky on Sunday.
Kwami Strong and Amanda Putzer, close loved ones of Becky, share an emotional hug during Becky’s vigil on Sunday.
Naomi Davis, who been Becky Rannow’s roommate for more than a decade, embraces Tony Rannow, Becky’s biological brother, on Sunday. When they hugged, Davis dropped some of the flowers she held.
Naomi Davis sings a rendition of “If I Ain’t Got You” by Alicia Keys during the vigil for Becky Rannow on Sunday. Davis was hesitant at first, but was encouraged by the crowd of about 50 people at the vigil to “do it for Becky.”
Tony and Ashley Rannow hold each other close as Kwami Strong sings during a vigil Sunday night in remembrance of Becky Rannow.
Kwami Strong, who was described as a brother figure for Becky, sings a heartfelt song for Becky during the vigil on Sunday.
Some loved ones present at Sunday’s vigil for Becky Rannow wore “#Justice4Becky” hats and face masks.
Over 50 loved ones and community members were gathered for a vigil for Becky on Sunday.
Over 50 loved ones and community members were gathered for a vigil for Becky on Sunday.
Over 50 loved ones and community members were gathered for a vigil for Becky on Sunday.
More than 50 people gathered for a vigil for Becky on Sunday night outside her home, where she was found shot to death on Aug. 13.
Over 50 loved ones and community members were gathered for a vigil for Becky on Sunday.
Over 50 loved ones and community members were gathered for a vigil for Becky on Sunday.
Over 50 loved ones and community members were gathered for a vigil for Becky on Sunday.
Over 50 loved ones and community members were gathered for a vigil for Becky on Sunday.
Over 50 loved ones and community members were gathered for a vigil for Becky on Sunday.
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Adam does a little bit of everything with the JT, from page editing to covering homelessness to localizing state & national politics. He grew up in Racine County, believes in the Oxford comma and loves digital subscribers: journaltimes.com/subscribenow
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RACINE — A man was killed following an argument over a haircut fee Saturday, according to criminal charges filed Monday.
When Andre Sandoval was 15, he participated in a campaign promoting the good in Racine to combat a bout of gun violence. Six years later, gun violence brought about his premature death.
Eloy Contreras, left, smiles for a photo with Andre Sandoval.
Andre Sandoval, left, smiles with his family in a Christmas photo.
Andre Sandoval, 21, was shot and killed outside Angel’s Beauty Salon, 2221 Durand Ave., on Saturday afternoon. Those working inside the salon on Sunday declined to comment.
Andre Sandoval, 21, helps build a porch earlier this summer during a week of service organized by the youth group he once had been a part of: ACTS (Active Catholic Teens In Service) Youth Ministry.
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