Slain teenager buried with firefighter honors in South Austin
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Full firefighter honors were given for a teenager laid to rest on Saturday in South Austin.
Hundreds of friends and family members packed the San Jose Catholic Church in South Austin for the funeral services of 17-year-old Mark Brandon Dominguez.
The teenager had aspired to be a firefighter before he was shot and killed near his South Austin home last weekend.
For two years, Dominguez was in the Explorer program, learning the ropes to one day work in fire and rescue. A mentor of his says the teenager was a motivated team leader, often nurturing younger students who joined the program after him.
"His responsibility was to teach them and catch them up, in what he had already been trained on,” Lt. Eddie Dominguez said. “He played a very good role in teaching them and training them everything he already had learned."
The body of the slain Akins High School student was escorted to the service by members of the Manchaca Fire Department. Dominguez received a funeral ceremony reserved for professional firefighters because of his dedication to one day work among them.
"From the day that I walked into the station he was my mentor, so it is a personal loss," Explorer team member Aaron Lopez said.
The Manchaca Fire Department setup a memorial account for Brandon Dominguez at Velocity Credit Union (Account #801122).
Two juveniles were arrested the same morning of Dominguez’s death, suspected in the crime. They were found armed in a cab near the scene where the 17-year-old was killed.