CASTROVILLE, Texas – Allison White thought her 16-year-old son, Athen Graff, had more time to live.

“I feel so sorry for him because he loved life so much,” she said.

White said Athen was one of a kind and had big dreams of going to college and working in the mental health field.

She said he had a special way of connecting to others.

“He was so beautiful and good to people and then this happens to him,” White said.

According to the Medina County Sheriff’s Office, Athen’s body was found in a field on Dec. 3, off lower Lacoste Road just outside his home in Castroville. They said the teen had been shot.

David Garcia Jr., 18, was arrested and charged with Athen’s murder. No motive has been released, but investigators believe the two teens knew each other.

“He had no idea there was this kind of evil in the world,” his grandmother Annette Gonzales said.

The community rallied around the same spot his body was found and shared in his family’s grief.

Gonzales said they have seen endless support from people who Athen touched. She said it brings her comfort knowing he made a mark and lived a life he was proud of.

“He was happy about where he was,” she said.

His sister, Sylvie Walsh, said Athen made others happy.

“Small little moments with him are really great, she said.

However, she said their family’s lives are now filled with silence.

“We’re gonna come home now and we’re not gonna be laughing with him anymore.”

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