STOCKTON, Calif. – The bright smile that lit up classrooms and family gatherings is gone forever. Nine-year-old Journey Rose Reotutar Guerrero, the youngest life taken in Saturday’s mass shooting at a children’s birthday party, has been identified by her heartbroken family.
Journey was among the six people killed when gunfire erupted without warning at a family celebration in Stockton’s Conway Homes neighborhood on November 29. Eleven others, including children, were wounded.
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“Journey Rose was a kind and helpful 9-year-old girl,” her aunt Jackie Reotutar wrote in a statement released Tuesday. “She was curious, gentle, and touched so many hearts.”
A third-grader at Commodore Stockton Skills Elementary School, Journey loved telling her family everything she learned each day. Art projects covered the refrigerator, gymnastics flips filled the living room, and fresh-baked cookies were her signature treat for neighbors.
“She wanted to be a doctor like her big sister,” Reotutar shared. “She dreamed of becoming a high-school cheerleader and never stopped helping people, even at nine years old.”
Journey leaves behind three devastated siblings: an 18-year-old sister she idolized, a 15-year-old brother, and a 10-year-old brother who were her constant playmates and adventure partners.
Classmates returned to school under heavy hearts this week. Counselors lined the hallways, and Journey’s empty desk was surrounded by flowers, drawings, and notes that read “We miss you” and “Fly high, Journey.”
A GoFundMe verified by family has raised more than $60,000 in 48 hours to help with funeral costs and support Journey’s siblings. The family says every share, prayer, and donation keeps their little girl’s giving spirit alive.
“Journey was growing up beautifully and should have had a long life full of learning, playing, and reaching every dream,” her family wrote. “She was taken from us far too soon.”
As Stockton continues to reel from the deadliest shooting in the city’s history, a new memorial of balloons, stuffed animals, and gymnastics ribbons grows daily at the park where Journey spent countless afternoons practicing cartwheels.
Journey Rose Reotutar Guerrero (forever 9) is now the face of a community demanding change, and the inspiration for thousands who never met her but will never forget her name. 💔
Rest in peace, sweet girl.