MARYSVILE, WA, U.S.A.
FRESHMAN STUDENT, MARYSVILLE PILCHUCK HIGH SCHOOL, MARYSVILLE, WA
10/24/2014, MARYSVILLE, WA
A note written by Gia Soriano to her parents is a precious keepsake. It is a beautiful 12-year-old’s expression of gratitude. “I am writing this to you to tell you how thankful I am. I know I don’t always act like I am, but I am,” the Marysville girl wrote on November 22, 2012. She thanked her parents for her home, for food and friends. It ends: “You have raised me good. So thank you. I love you! Happy Thanksgiving!”
“Our hearts are heavy with sadness and grief, but we would like to thank everyone who has helped us through this tragic loss of our beautiful Gia,” the Soriano family expressed their gratitude to the community. “Gia was an extraordinary young lady, and through her gorgeous smile and her kind words, she radiated sunshine in everyone’s eyes. She brought love and happiness to so many lives,” the statement said.
“She was my favorite cousin,” said 11-year-old Gabby Soriano. A sixth-grader at North Middle School in Everett. Gabby spoke at Gia’s memorial service November 15th at Everett’s Immaculate Conception Church. “She was my cousin, my best friend and my hero,” Gabby added. “I always looked up to her.”
Gabby remembered sleepovers, shopping, trips with Gia to the ocean and Great Wolf Lodge. “We got to do a lot of special things together, like skip school and go to the Justin Bieber concert.”
“Gia taught her a lot of things about growing up. She was kind and patient,” Gay Soriano said. Anthony Soriano also spoke at the service, calling Gia “a great sister to me.”
“She had a way with kids. It was a calling,” Susan Soriano said. Her daughter wasn’t shy, but was so soft-spoken that people were drawn to her and listened closely.
Gia grew up in Marysville, where she attended Marshall Elementary School and Marysville Middle School before starting at Marysville Pilchuck in 2014.
An animal lover, as a child Gia set up a make-believe veterinary clinic. She dreamed of being a veterinarian. Her family had bunnies. And Gia used to ride horses at the Equine Rescue facility near her Marysville home.
She had an artistic flair. Her mother marveled at the way she wrapped gifts, and her willingness to write the family’s Christmas cards. Growing up, she played basketball and violin. As a little girl, Gia’s curly hair reminded her mom of Shirley Temple. As a teen, Gia tamed her ringlets into different styles.
Her favorite color was purple. Cousin Gabby liked the purple decor of Gia’s room. On Monday, Susan Soriano shared a purple wristband printed with “GIA God’s Incredible Angel.”
More than 1,000 mourners filled the church and the gym of Immaculate Conception and Our Lady of Perpetual Help School to celebrate Gia’s life.