Just hours after graduating from Sophie B. Wright High School, family members confirmed 18-year-old Ferdinand Woolens was killed in a shooting.
“That was an innocent soul, a great soul, a soul that was not meant to leave earth this early,” said Nijah Brown.
Woolens earned his diploma with honors from Sophie B. Wright last Monday. Early Tuesday morning, he was hurt in a Treme shooting, according to police.
When officers responded to the scene early Tuesday morning, they found Woolens inside an SUV, shot multiple times. Police say he was transported to a hospital, where he died days later.
“We were just celebrating graduation that day, they had a party at a hall, we would’ve never known we would leave that party and never see him again,” said Nijah Brown.
An 18-year-old with a promising future ahead, his family says he had a full-ride scholarship to college set to study engineering this fall.
“he was on his way to LSU — full scholarship, he scored a 30 on the ACT, and the sky was the limit for him,” said Marcus Henderson.
Exactly one week after his graduation, his family, friends and classmates held onto photos of Woolens during a prayer service, honoring his life while pushing for gun violence to stop.
“I’ve lost three friends to gun violence, and I feel like there has to be a change in Louisiana. It’s so sad it takes a death to bring us together. We have to start making changes,” said Lamaj Cayou.
NOPD has not released any details about a potential suspect. They urge anyone with information to contact police or Crimestoppers.
READ MORE:Hours after graduating high school, New Orleans teenager killed in a shooting
