At Joey Goodwin’s art class in the basement of Augsburg Fairview Academy, there is an empty seat, and a message of love written on his desk.
“Long live Joey,” it reads. “We will all miss you,” and the initials AFA.
“Joey was a tall, gentle giant,” recalls Heidi Anderson, the academy’s executive director. “He had a head full of hair, and everybody knew him and loved him at school.”
“He was a really special kid,” adds Chris Harer, one of the academy’s English teachers. “Really a beautiful soul.”
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Goodwin, a 17-year-old junior, started attending classes there in October.
Fellow students, teachers and staff were shocked to learn he was one of four victims who were shot and killed along 25th Street in the Midtown neighborhood Tuesday night.
“When you hear there was a shooting and knowing that it’s at Little Earth or on Bloomington and 25th, these are the neighborhoods our kids live in,” Anderson says quietly. “It makes me sick to my stomach, thinking that could be someone I know, and it usually is.”
Goodwin’s classmates didn’t want to speak during our visit, but one girl showed 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS the painting she made for him, portraying an angel.
It too says, ‘long live Joey’ along with the words, ‘you’ll be missed,’ with a heart symbol nearby.
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Anderson also showed KSTP a still life that Goodwin painted before his death.
Days after the shooting, many at the academy are still stunned.
“I was shocked, I couldn’t believe it,” Harer declares. “Felt like I had just seen him.”
He recalls Goodwin as a voracious reader, especially about Indigenous culture — one of those kids who drew people to him.
“He had so much more ahead of him, really good things ahead of him,” Harer says. “To have that cut short and feeling like it was almost stolen from him.”
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Anderson says she visited Goodwin’s family Friday morning.
“They are destroyed,” she explains. “I mean, Joey is… was a very positive kid, and he brought a lot of energy and light into a room. And he leaves a big hole in their hearts. They’re hurting right now, and I think it’s going to take a long time to recover.”
Some yarn material, requested earlier by Goodwin for a project, was brought to the school the day after his death.
Staffers say it will be made into a blanket and presented to his family.
There are also plans to plant a flowering crab apple tree as a living memorial to Goodwin’s life.
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“It would leave a very nice space for his family to be able to come and remember him, too,” Anderson says.
The academy is working on getting grief counselors to help students work through the loss of their friend. Anderson says it’s important for the community to know who Goodwin was and to honor his life, cut tragically short.
“That’s why we’re hoping to share as much as we can about him, so he’s not forgotten,” she declares. “Because he was an incredible kid.”
CHICAGO (WLS) — A United Airlines flight that left Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport Friday was diverted due to an unruly passenger, officials said.
United flight 2005 from Chicago was headed to Minneapolis but landed in Madison, Wisconsin.
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“United flight 2005 from Chicago to Minneapolis landed safely in Madison, Wisconsin to address a security concern with an unruly passenger,” the airline said in a statement. “The flight is expected to continue to Minneapolis later on Friday.”
An ICE agent facing several assault charges in connection with a January shooting involving two Venezuelan people in Minnesota has been arrested in Texas, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said.
Christian Castro was charged earlier this month with four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime.
CNN is working to determine whether Castro has an attorney and has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment.
Castro faces those charges in connection with the shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan man shot in the leg through the front door of a Minneapolis home. The incident took place during the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement blitz in the Twin Cities.
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Originally, Sosa-Celis and his cousin Alfredo A. Aljorna were facing federal charges after DHS said they had attacked an agent, prompting him to fire a defensive shot.
But the Justice Department dropped the charges in February, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement said two of its agents, who made false statements about the incident under oath, were placed on administrative leave.
FOX 9’s Erika Mrazik has your Thursday evening and extended forecast. Our temperatures continue to feel more like July than May, and we’ll continue to see plenty of sun.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has issued an air quality alert for the Twin Cities starting Friday.
Air quality alert in Twin Cities
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What we know:
MPCA says that ground-level ozone will be at unhealthy levels in the Twin Cities on Friday. An air quality will be in place from noon to 9 p.m.
An air quality alert in the Twin Cities. Graphic courtesy of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. (Supplied)
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Sunny skies, low humidity and warm temperatures make for favorable conditions pollutants to react with sunlight to make ground-level ozone. MPCA says the ozone will subside as the sun sets.
Who is most affected by poor air quality?
Dig deeper:
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People with asthma or other breathing conditions like COPD, chronic bronchitis and emphysema will be affected by poor quality. They can experience symptoms like difficulty deep breathing, shortness of breath, throat soreness, wheezing, coughing and unusual fatigue.
Additionally, children, teenagers and people of all ages who are doing heavy physical activity outside.
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What you can do:
MPCA recommends taking it easy while outside and limiting physical activity.
To help reduce pollution, use public transit or carpool when possible, fill up your car’s tank at dawn or dusk and avoid backyard fires.
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The Source: A press release from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.
