LE GRAND, California (KSEE) –The community of Le Grand is rallying together in support of the Ortiz family after the loss of three children. Police say their mother murdered them on Wednesday. On Sunday, the father’s soccer team hosted a carwash to fundraise for funeral expenses.
“People started lining up since like 8:40, 8:50 a.m.,” said Carlos Rogel, one of the coaches at Le Grand High School Boys Soccer team.
“Our coach is a pretty big part of our team,” said Francisco Coria, who also coaches at Le Grand.
On Wednesday, fellow coach Israel Ortiz lost his three children. Police say 8-year-old Anna, 5-year-old Matteo, and 3-year-old Alexa were killed by their mother.
“I was in disbelief for a long time and I just couldn’t process information. So it hit home very hard,” said coach Daniel Callejas.
Some of the coaches had met little Matteo over the Christmas break.
“He would go with his dad and help us coach,” said Rogel.
“He was very energetic, he liked to run around, he’d be out there kicking the ball with his dad,” said Coria.
The team said coach Ortiz is still processing what happened.
“He just asked for all the community to pray for him and his family,” said Callejas.
In the meantime, his team is giving back.
“They always wanna help out. Not only our soccer boys but our football team, our girls soccer. All our sports come together ’cause we’re such a close community,” said Callejas.
The soccer team is also planning a vigil for the Ortiz family soon.