Category: Photos

Lately Giacomo has been popping up in my head more often then before. I think because of quarantine and school my emotions have been a blur, but now I have more time to process. I thought with time the feelings would dull and become less painful, but I noticed that even within months my mind has grown, and there’s more room for feelings and deeper thoughts.

There is no way to say this in a way that someone hasn’t already. Giacomo was a special human. And not in a weird way like the word special is used most of the time, though his goofiness was definitely a key personality trait. He was kinder, more thoughtful, more deep than anyone I had met before, and yet he could make light out of sad conversation without ruining it. He made me laugh and instantly trust him with all of my secrets, and he was so easy to talk to. He was friends with everyone, but had a close circle of friends that he never let go of. 

When trying to describe him to others that never knew him, I struggle. Most people tend to talk about the good things when someone dies, and there is no exception with Giacomo. Except that Giacomo was better than most people, so when describing him, you can’t stress it enough.

But sometimes I forget that Giacomo was a typical teenage boy. He loved his X-box and soda and making edgy jokes and he didn’t like to do homework and I love him for that.
But I think my favorite thing about him was his un embarrassment to show love. He loved his parents and his dog and his friends and his cousins and his jaritos and thats a personality trait I think we could all use a little more of. Because love shouldn’t be a thing we’re embarrassed of showing.

So thank you, Ms. and Mr. Torcaso for raising a kid that could show us more about what life is about, to enjoy the time you have and to show love a little more.

—Madeleine Koenig

I still don’t think I have all the words I need to express how much I miss and cared about Giacomo. I’ve been trying to put my feelings into music as well, but even that is tough. I don’t exactly know how I feel at the moment because I’ve never experienced this before. 
 The only thing I’d wish for right now is to have him here so he could see how many people love and care about him. I wish he could be with his family and friends again. I wish we all could’ve said goodbye. I wish we could say hello again. I wish none of us had to go through this pain. I wish he could’ve continued his life because that’s what he deserved. I believe he would’ve had an amazing future ahead of him. 

He had such a happy and positive spirit. He was intelligent, kind, thoughtful, supportive, caring, inclusive, talented, trustworthy, generous, and so much more. Giacomo was always there for me and I appreciated that about him. He knew how to make everyone smile and laugh better than anybody else could. I feel so honored that I was lucky enough to have been his friend. I’m thankful that I have so many memories that I will cherish for the rest of my life. 

One of my favorite memories with him is when we went to the Magnolia pool. Afterwards, I got to drive in the car with his adorable dog. Augie sat on my lap while his head faced Giacomo. It made both of us laugh a lot! Another great memory is when the school musical ended. I think we were one of the only kids left at the party when the adults started karaoke. It was so fun because his mom sang a song with a few of the other adults. He looked very embarrassed 😉 .  

Even simple memories like these are so nice to remember. I thought it was so funny when he used to randomly start rapping songs I didn’t know, tell me to feel how soft his hair was after he got haircuts (it was VERY soft), and jokingly bump into me in the halls during passing periods. One time before the school musical auditions, Giacomo and Ms. Torcaso came to our house. He said for his audition, he was going to sing a song from Moana. Of course, we all pleaded him to sing it for us. He did. It was lovely. I recall he even had to sing, “I wish I could be the perfect daughter.” which made us all laugh. I bet he was the perfect son.  The last memory I’d like to share is when I went to his house and we watched shows, chased Augie around the dining room, and jumped on his trampoline. He showed me many of his impressive tricks. 

 I have many more big and small memories with him, but those are the ones that remind me of some of his best qualities. 

 I think the worst thing for me right now is that I’ll never get to see him again. But whenever I think that, I just remind myself that even though it was a short life, I think it was a really great one. 

 I love looking back at the pictures and short videos I have of him. I wish I had many more. But even if he’s not next to me, I’m definitely looking forward to seeing him in my dreams. 🙂

– Zoe Papadakis