One little girl had been given her honour roll certificate hours earlier, beaming with pride.
Another loved to swim and sang Sweet Child O' Mine with her dad on the way to school every day.
Others were cousins.
These are some of the 21 victims of the massacre at Robb Elementary School in Texas — 19 children and two teachers.
Eva Mireles
Relatives briefed by police said Ms Mireles, alongside her teaching colleague Irma Garcia, died trying to protect the students.
The 44-year-old's daughter Adalynn said she wanted to "hug her one last time" and pledged to "forever say your name", and that she selflessly tried to save the lives of others.
She said she loved crossfit and staying active.
She was married with one daughter and "three furry friends".
Irma Garcia
Mrs Garcia had four children and had been teaching for 23 years.
A biography on the school's website said she loved to barbecue with her husband, take cruises and listen to music. Her eldest child is at Marine boot camp and her youngest is in 7th grade.
The school's profile page said she and Ms Mireles had been co-teachers for five years.
Eliahna 'Ellie' Garcia
Steven Garcia paid tribute to his daughter, who was 10: "Our Ellie was a doll and was the happiest ever! I was gonna DJ for her at her party like she wanted me too!!!"
Her aunt, Siria Arizmendi, a teacher at another school said she was outgoing and loved dancing and sports.
Ms Arizmendi spoke angrily through tears about how the suspected shooter got a gun.
A post from her basketball team said she was their "hype girl" and "never in a bad mood".
Alexandria 'Lexi' Rubio
Hours after this photo was taken, a gunman came into Alexandria's classroom and killed her, alongside scores of her classmates.
In the post, her mother said: "We told her we loved her and would pick her up after school.
In another post she called her the "love of my life".
Jacklyn Cazares
Her father, Javier Cazares, said the nine-year-old was with a group of five girls, including her second cousin, Annabelle Rodriguez, who formed a tight group of friends.
He said his daughter was a “firecracker" who "had a voice, she didn't like bullies, she didn't like kids being picked on."
"All in all, full of love. She had a big heart," he said.
Jailah Silguero
Her mother, Veronica Luevanos, said on Facebook: "My baby, you didn't deserve this."
She told Univision that her 10-year-old daughter did not want to go to school on Tuesday and seemed to sense something bad was going to happen.
Jayce Carmelo Luevanos
Jayce and Jailah were cousins.
Uziyah Garcia
Manny Renfro lost his eight-year-old grandson, Uziyah Garcia, in the shooting.
"The sweetest little boy that I've ever known," Mr Renfro said.
"I'm not just saying that because he was my grandkid."
He said Uziyah last visited him in San Angelo during spring break.
"We started throwing the football together and I was teaching him pass patterns. Such a fast little boy and he could catch a ball so good," he said.
"There were certain plays that I would call that he would remember and he would do it exactly like we practised."
Amerie Jo Garza
The 10-year-old's father, Angel Garza, posted on social media, asking for help to find his daughter, but hours later added this news:
He urged people not to "take a second for granted" while her mother Kimberly said on Facebook: "How am I supposed to live life without you?"
Layla Salazar
The 10-year-old loved to swim and dance to Tik Tok videos her dad Vincent said.
Each morning as he drove her to school in his pick-up, he would play Sweet Child O' Mine, by Guns N' Roses, and they'd sing along.
"She was just a whole lot of fun," he said.
Tess Mata
Her sister posted this tribute on Twitter, saying she was "loved so deeply":
Makenna Lee Elrod
Xavier Lopez
The 10-year-old was among the first victims named in the shooting.
A cousin, Lisa Garza, said: "He was just a loving ... little boy, just enjoying life, not knowing that this tragedy was going to happen."
ABC/Wires
