San Antonio – The daughter of a San Antonio mother who was gunned down as she was getting off work is both sharing the story of the woman her mother was and asking for justice.
Jessica Calvillo, 20, is the daughter of Maria Calvillo, 50.
She said her mother was a hard-working woman who was very humorous.
“She was always getting after us for one thing or another,” Jessica laughed. “But she was very loving and caring and very funny. We had a lot of insiders with her.”
Maria Calvillo’s niece, Maria Ortega, agreed.
“There are not words to describe her,” Ortega said. “She was an awesome woman. She was very quiet and reserved, which is why what happened is so shocking to us.”
The family said Maria Calvillo worked the graveyard shift at a Toyota plant and she cleaned houses on the side.
Jessica said she was going to pick her mother up in the morning but she didn’t show up.
“I drove all over looking for her but my little brother and I just thought she was cleaning a house. So he told me to come home,” Jessica said.
When she got home, that is when she got the news.
“A police officer and detective came to the door and told us to come inside and sit down,” Jessica said. “They broke the news to us and I am really glad my dad and little brother were here because it would have only been me alone and that would have been tough.”
San Antonio police say Maria Calvillo was shot and killed in the front yard of a home on Kayton Avenue, down the street from where she lived.
The police have yet to release any more details other than a person was detained. They have not said if that person is the suspect or if any charges have been filed.
The family wants whoever is responsible for killing Maria Calvillo to turn themselves in.
“We just can’t let this guy go free,” Ortega said. “We want to know why he did it because she didn’t deserve it. Her kids don’t deserve to live without a mom and without having to know what really happened that night. Why did he do it?”
“You could tell she was coming back from work,” Jessica said. “She had sneakers on. Her lunch bag she always carried everywhere she went, so there was no need for that. It was stupid for him to just shoot a gun and took a life and affected others because of that.”
They said they hope other families learn from this devastating loss.
“Cherish every moment you have with family, even if it is just saying, ‘I love you,’ or something as little as that. You never know its impact because you never know what could happen,” Jessica said. “They could be here today and the next, not.”
The family is planning services for this weekend.
They are asking anyone with any information that can help with this investigation to call police.