Candlelight vigil held for family killed in Rogers Park townhome fire

A community came together on Saturday night to remember four relatives who died in a fire in Rogers Park this week.

People gathered outside the family's home were emotional, remembering the family as loving, joyful, and beloved by the community as candles illuminated the memorial.

Prayers surrounded the townhouse on North Paulina Street just off Greenleaf Avenue, where the four family members died in a fire early Thursday morning.

The four victims were identified as Maria Garcia, 69, her daughter, Marisa Garcia, 48, and Maria's grandchildren, Frankie Vallejo, 24, and Valentino Vallejo, 13. The family dog also died.

"Look around. It means that these people were well-loved and they were wonderful people, and this is a tragedy. And it shouldn't have happened," said Kathy Schaper.

Schaper was Valentino's first and fifth-grade teacher at Kilmer Elementary and knew him by his nickname, "Tino."

"When people say he was a sweet boy, he was the definition of a sweet boy. Like, not a mean bone in his body," she said.

Schaper says the community is surrounding the family with support.

"They were just one of the families at our school that everyone appreciated and loved."

The family of the victims is raising funds online to help pay for funeral services.

"It's devastating, and nobody can understand it. Like, why? Of all people? But if I know Tino right, he's looking down at everybody, and he's telling everybody, 'I'm ok. I'm going to get through this, and you are too," Schaper said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.