I met Daniel Perez last year where we both worked at the time, and I liked him instantly, as everyone did. We became good friends and spent a lot of time together right before he left home to start in the fall. He was so excited to attend Virginia Tech. I remember frantically calling him the day in August that classes started when the other shootings happened, how he reassured me that everything would be OK and how he was his usual happy self. I wish we could hear his voice again, telling us that everything's OK now. I'll always remember him as one of the most ambitious and driven people I've ever met. He had a beautiful smile that would brighten up anyone's day and a wonderful sense of humor. He will be missed by many. Daniel's with God now, and that's my only consolation during this awful time.

I met Daniel in Peru, where I come from, where we were members of the same swimming team club. I also know his family and my family does too. Unfortunately, we lost contact when they immigrated to the United States in their goal to achieve a better life, coincidentally, just the same way my family did. This news struck me as a college student from the University of New Mexico, but when my family and I heard the he had past away, my mother burst in tears and thanked God I was still with her. Personally, I cannot believe that this great person is not with us anymore. He did not do anything wrong. He just wanted to study, like most immigrants do, in order to achieve his dreams, the American dream. Terrible news like this don't usually strike people because we seem to not to appreciate the real dimension of things that happened, but when a person you know is a victim, it makes a big impact on life. Through this message I would like to make a call for a prayer, just one, for all the victims and their families and hope they rest in peace.

Daniel and I lived in the same city, went to to different high schools, but competed against one another during high school swim meets. We became close friends when we met at an International Relations Organization of Virginia Tech meeting, where we recognized each other from our high school swim seasons. We instantly became friends, and were delegates at the Georgetown Model United Nations Conference. That weekend is where many friendships blossomed. Not only was Daniel intelligent and passionate about international relations (daniel, austin, and our group was set on changing the world!), but his love and caring for his friends was endless. He was my bambino, I his bambina. He taught me, and many others in IROVT, to dance like "real Peruvians." Tu me manques, Daniel.

I met both Austin Cloyd and Daniel Perez Cueva last October through IRO. We all just kind of bonded together; they became core people in my group of friends. I could and did literally talk to them about anything. Austin and I would joke around all the time, share Dane Cook quotes and just distract each other on AIM when we should have been studying. Daniel would come over to the apartment to study with Megan Mirmelstein and just hang out all the time. He'd have me proof some of his papers, and the last thing I read over was his application essay for the College Ambassadors program. I was so proud of him when he got accepted. Austin and Daniel were both amazing, loved people. I just feel lucky that I got a chance to know them, even though it was cut short.