By Soleil Cardenas
East Los Angeles College student Abel Ruiz was pronounced dead after dying of suicide this past Sunday.
Ruiz was found hanging from a chain link fence off the 10 freeway on the north side of the overpass near West Saxon and Jackson Avenue.
Ruiz was 19 years old and a Rosemead local. He was the third oldest out of five siblings.
Ruiz’s sister Sasha describes him as a dorky kid growing up.
“Abel was your typical little brother, goofy and stubborn but adored dearly, ” Sasha said.
She said that Abel loved the “Harry Potter” and “Percy Jackson & the Olympians” series while growing up.
He attended San Gabriel High School where he played football for four years.
Ruiz was passionate about football.
“His golden years were when he was playing football. We watched him go from just starting out playing for the pee-wee division to playing an awesome defense in high school,” Sasha said.
At ELAC, Ruiz was initially majoring in Psychology but switched his major to Mechanical Engineering.
Ruiz’s family was shocked by the news and never saw this coming.
“As a family nobody saw this coming. He was bright and doing big things for himself. He was working, going to school and even moved in with his girlfriend’s family. We thought he was making his way, we never thought it would end like this,” Sasha said.
If you or anyone you know may be suffering call 988, Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
For friends or loved ones who have expeirenced suicide loss visit https://www.soslsd.org for suuport.
“Please cherish and hug your loved ones for us. Life is too short. Long live Abel,” Ruiz said.