A 15-year-old JROTC cadet sacrificed himself to save 'dozens' during the Florida shooting - and thousands of people want him buried with full military honors
- A 15-year-old JROTC cadet died helping his classmates escape the gunman that stormed his Florida school last week.
- Peter Wang was shot multiple times and killed while holding the door to his study hall open, allowing dozens of his classmates to escape.
- People are now petitioning the White House to have Wang buried with full military honors.
A freshman JROTC cadet died helping his classmates escape the gunman that stormed his Parkland, Florida school last week with an AR-15.
Peter Wang was wearing his grey JROTC uniform with black stripes as he held the door to his study hall open, helping "dozens" of his fellow classmates escape, before he was shot multiple times and killed, according to multiple reports.
Now people are petitioning the White House to bury Wang with full military honors. More than 60,000 people have signed the petition as of midday on Tuesday.
Wang's "selfless and heroic actions have led to the survival of dozens in the area. Wang died a hero, and deserves to be treated as such, and deserves a full honors military burial," the petition reads.
"He died a gentleman holding the door for other students," Wang's friend, Kelsey, told CNN. "And knowing he's gone is going to haunt me forever."
Wang was known to have protected others in the past.
When his older cousin, Aaron Chen, who didn't speak English, moved to the US from China, he made sure no one bullied him, according to the Miami Herald.
Wang, who dreamed of attending West Point, joined the US Army Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps upon entering Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School as a freshman.
He was reportedly a good marksman, and was set to be promoted the following week to the "A" team of his third period Bravo unit, Angelyse Perez, Wang's 18-year-old commander, told the Herald.
"That kid was the most hilarious thing on the planet," Perez said. "He was always happy and bubbly and smiley."
"He is so brave. He is the person who is genuinely kind to everyone," Wang's 24-year-old cousin, Lin Chen, told the Orlando Sun Sentinel. "He doesn't care about popularity. He always liked to cheer people up. He is like the big brother everyone wished they had."
"I feel the family can never be the same," Chen said.
Wang, who was born in New York, was one of 17 people killed last Wednesday. He was 15 years old.