La Vernia – A San Antonio family is asking the community for help with the return of their stolen lawn mower they used to maintain a cemetery where their 16-year-old son was buried.
Ibraheem Azooz died a sudden death in March from an underlying heart condition.
“He was an astounding young man,” said Monica Almaguer, his mother. “He put everyone before himself. We never understood how much he meant to people until he passed. We got so much support from everyone on the football and soccer team and everyone at Harland High School. He was just the light that lit up the room. Nothing bothered him. He was very easy going and good natured. The love he had for his family and the love he had for his friends was no different. He treated his family like friends.”
When Ibraheem Azooz, or Ibie, passed away, he was buried in the Islamic Cemetery in La Vernia off County Road 341.
“It has been hard,” said Shaddy Azooz, his father. “Life has been really hard since he passed away. It is a test. God tests you in different ways and this was the ultimate test for us.”
While maintaining their son’s place of rest, the family decided to maintain the entire cemetery for other families.
“I know me personally, I didn’t want to come to any place where my son is resting and is unhappy,” Almaguer said. “That is the one thing I wanted to do is to help keep up the area. We have the opportunity to do that. I believe it is a blessing that we can do that and come out here, not only to spend time with our son, but to give back to other families.”
Azooz said they used money from their savings to purchase a riding lawn mower for $1,100. In addition to visiting their son and maintaining the trees in the cemetery multiple times a week, every Sunday, they cut the grass.
That volunteer service came to an abrupt halt this past week.
“On Wednesday or Thursday night, late at night, someone came in the cemetery and opened the garage and were able to drag it out,” Azooz said. “They were able to drag it out with a couple of people because it is a heavy lawn mower and the way it was chained, it went through the axels and through the steering wheel.”
They said they are beyond disappointed that anyone would ever steal from a cemetery.
“$1,100 going down the drain because somebody didn’t put enough thought into seeing where did this come from and what type of service it is doing for the people laid to rest here,” Azooz said. “It is pretty sentimental. It is heartbreaking.”
The family has since taken their search to social media, to flyers, and to the La Vernia Police Department.
They said they are not angry with the suspect, but would like for their property to be returned.
“We don’t want to press any charges,” Azooz said. “Me as a person, I believe in second and third chances. We just want the machine back so we can continue maintaining the cemetery. You know, choices you could make, you know, could set the path for the rest of your life. Be aware of that and I believe in forgiving people that do this type of thing because it is tough during these times. It really is.”
If you have any information that could help the family, you are urged to contact the La Vernia Police Department.
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