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Top Stories: Santa Fe High School Funerals Begin; Does Texas Still Need Runoff Elections

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A funeral was held for Christian Riley Garcia on Friday at Crosby Church in Houston. Garcia was one of 10 people killed at Santa Fe High School.

The top local stories this evening from KERA News: 

Family and friends say Christian Riley Garcia, one of the students slain by a gunman last week at his Texas high school, displayed bravery "far beyond his years" and often put the needs of others before himself.

Mourners gathered Friday in the Houston suburb of Crosby for the funeral of the 15-year-old Garcia, a history junky who was eager to embark on a military career. Friends say Garcia last week used his body as a barricade against a closet door in a classroom at Santa Fe High School to keep the shooter from entering.

Garcia was among eight students and two teachers who died in the shooting.

Other stories this evening:

  • This week's primary runoffs in Texas drew fewer than 1 million people to the polls, according to the Texas Election Source. Just 10 states hold primary runoff elections. UT-Austin professor Sherri Greenberg talked with Texas Standard host David Brown about the low voter turnout problems.

  • For veterans, coming home after a tour overseas can be challenging. This was true for Army Major Jas Boothe who was homeless with her son after being hit with the double blow of Hurricane Katrina and a cancer diagnosis. While thousands of female veterans find themselves without permanent housing, Boothe realized there were no programs that could help. Today on Think, she talked with Krys Boyd about the struggles of being a homeless single-mom.

  • Thousands of veterans attend UT-Arlington, many deal with disabilities and lingering trauma. Could they benefit from art therapy? Amanda Alexander, an associate professor in art education, conducted research to find out. In our weekly State of the Arts conversation, KERA’s Anne Bothwell talked with Alexander about what she learned.

You can listen to North Texas stories weekdays at 8:22 a.m. and 6:20 p.m. on KERA 90.1 FM.

Gus Contreras is a digital producer and reporter at KERA News. Gus produces the local All Things Considered segment and reports on a variety of topics from, sports to immigration. He was an intern and production assistant for All Things Considered in Washington D.C.