Writer’s note: This is an interview of two students of Silver Creek High School (Jason Hernandez ‘20 and Jacky Chan 19’). These questions were asked and answered in honor of Lizette Andrea Cuesta, who was murdered in with friends that stated to be close to her over her sadly short-lifetime. This article is compliant to the respect of Cuesta’s old neighborhood and family friends. May she forever rest in peace.
Where were you when you heard the news?
Jason Hernandez: I woke up. I was already late to school actually, and I was walking to school and I saw on Snapchat a selfie of Liz with a rest in peace caption and for a moment I didn’t believe it. I thought it was a joke. When I got to school, my friends asked me if it was actually true, and at that moment I was like “fuck”, no way. Then my friend sent me a screenshot of a news article with her that she’d been stabbed, man... ------ it honestly ----- I just don’t know - and it’s already been a couple days.
How did you know her?
Jason Hernandez: We grew up around each other, our houses were close to Dovehill, and we always used to go skate, I remember her cat that she brought too, man. She was always so friendly, and although she wasn’t that good at skating, she always wanted to try to learn them. So that’s just what I remember her as, just one of the boys that I grew up with, you know?
Explain after school after everyone knew and the news teams were on the scene what it was like for you to be interviewed on the news.
Jacky Chan: It was crazy. I walked up, and a reporter was just in my face asking questions, I couldn’t even handle the news myself, let alone talk about it to a stranger with a camera. But I did, because I still feel like that’s what Liz wanted, and it made me feel good inside that I was able to talk and just sad to see what this community lost. She just left here too, man, she started a new life up there in Tracy with her dad, and things seemed to be going straight. You just can’t get involved with the wrong people, I think that’s one of the true morals from this tragedy.
How would you like her to be memorized as?
Hernandez and Chan both had the same hesitation, they paused, and their answers were very similar. One thing they both specifically said was:
Jason Hernandez and Jacky Chan: I just want her to be remembered as her.