Beneath a full moon, candlelight flickered as hundreds shared memories of a mother, daughter, sister, and friend.
About 200 members of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community stood in unity to grieve Passion Schurz at a candlelight vigil on Wednesday. The 28-year-old mother of two was first reported missing on March 22, before her body was recovered from a canal in Scottsdale on Saturday morning.
“Beautiful young lady. It breaks my heart because she was only 28 years old,” Victoria Gonzales, a family friend, said.
Schurz was last seen on March 19 near her family home on the reservation. The candlelight vigil on a high school football field, held nearly two weeks later, just two miles away.
“It's devastating for all of us,” Gonzales said.
Schurz leaves behind two little girls.
Several family members spoke at the vigil, including Schurz’s mother, Anna Anderson.
“Thank you for loving my daughter. Thank you for being her friend. Thank you for being her support,” Anderson told the crowd.
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Last week, Anderson spoke one-on-one with ABC15 about the weight of her daughter's disappearance.
“I've done actual, you know, literal footwork on this reservation, looking for her,” she said. “All I want to know is that she's okay.”
Now, her worst nightmare is realized.
Schurz’s cause of death is still unknown.
Scottsdale police, taking over the death investigation, say there were no fractures, stab or gunshot wounds. They say it could be weeks before the Medical Examiner determines how Schurz died, and police understand how she ended up in the canal.
“It’s going to be a big struggle,” one of Schurz’s relatives, who did not want to be named, told ABC15. “I think that's the worst thing for a parent, to lose their child. I really do, because it's happened before in our family too.”
While the circumstances around Schurz’s case are unclear, people at the vigil say one trend remains evident: the tragic deaths of too many young people in their tribal community.
“I have three more relatives that it happened to,” Schurz’s relative said.
“Seven years ago, my son was murdered out here, and it's very emotional,” Gonzales added. “We're going to find ways to make our community better. Ways to make sure, you know, people are searched for.”
Now they say goodbye to another young woman.
“It's about laying baby girl to rest,” Gonzales said. “It's emotional. It's devastating, because it's an epidemic. It's a crisis that we have out here.”
Waiting for answers.
The community has started a crowdfunding campaign for Schurz’s family to help cover funeral and memorial expenses, and to provide to stability for her two children left behind.
