ARLINGTON, Va. — The Wakefield High School community is mourning the loss of yet another student. Principal Peter Balas says 9th grader Jorge Chavarris Rodriguez died Thursday evening.
Luz Rodriguez, his mother, told WUSA9 her son was always very happy and loved to help others. She said he loved fixing bicycles and playing sports like soccer.
She says Thursday night she got home from work and found the money she'd left her son for food, still sitting there. She began calling him, but he didn't answer.
Luz Rodriguez says she started calling everyone she knew and at one point went out looking for him in places he would sometimes go to hang out with friends, but he was nowhere to be found.
A few hours later, Thursday night, she says Arlington County Police called her and told her they needed to speak with her in person. She told WUSA9 that the officers told her they'd found a body and believed it was her son, but needed her to identify him.
Rodriguez says she didn't want to see the photo, because she could feel in her body that it was her son. But, the police insisted that she needed to look at the photo. She told WUSA9 the moment she saw her son's picture, her heart sank and she was devastated.
She says police told her he had likely overdosed from Fentanyl, but that they had to wait on the results of his autopsy.
This would make Rodriguez the second Wakefield High School student to die from a suspected opioid overdose in 2023.
Freshman Sergio Flores died in February after he was reportedly found unconscious in a Wakefield High School bathroom.
Since then, the Arlington County community has demanded change. Arlington Public Schools says they've made Narcan readily available in all schools, and have trained all staff on how to use it.
They're also in the process of hiring another substance abuse counselor. This would bring the total number of substance abuse counselors in schools across the county to eight.
"We've expanded our prevention interventions into elementary schools," says Jenny Sexton who is one of the substance abuse counselors for APS.
"There's 25 elementary schools. I go to all of the fourth and fifth grades and we do prevention education starting in 4th grade. We also do prevention lessons in sixth-12th grade," she said.
"We're offering training resources support to prevent anything tragic from happening as we continue to navigate this world of uncertainty with substance misuse and addiction," she told WUSA9.
In a letter to the community, officials say "The fentanyl crisis is wreaking havoc on the Latino communities of Arlington, claiming multiple lives and tearing our families apart."
The NAACP is urging Arlington County and Arlington Public Schools to come together immediately and commit to funding a full-service teen center in the community to help prevent future tragedies.
"We don't know what happened, but what we know is we need to stop this," said Janeth Valenzuela, a community advocate.
Principal of Wakefield High School, Peter Balas, sent a letter home to families Tuesday.
"It is with great sadness that I inform you that one of our ninth graders from the Class of 2027, Jorge Chavarria Rodriguez, died on Thursday evening, September 21. Jorge was a beloved member of the Wakefield, Kenmore, and Barcroft families, and impacted the lives of many of our students and staff members."
He added that support staff members are available on Tuesday to talk with any student who feels they need extra support.
Students may always text 988 or call the Cigna Helpline at 833-Me-Cigna (833-632-4462) for support at any time. Anyone with concerns about their child and this loss can contact the school's counselor, school psychologist, or school social worker. The Wakefield Counseling Office can be reached at 703-228-6700.
Rodriguez told WUSA9 she never thought she'd have to say goodbye to her son so soon and hopes that by speaking up, it will prevent another family from having to go through what her family is going through right now.
A GoFundMe has been started to help the Rodriguez family, as of 11:45 p.m. Tuesday it has raised more than $16,000.
RELATED:
WATCH NEXT: