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Donio R Sanchez 1979 - 2001

Donio Robert Sanchez of Reedley, Fresno County, CA was born on November 2, 1979 in Fresno, and died at age 21 years old on October 29, 2001 at Kaweah Health Medical Center in Visalia, Tulare County. Donio Sanchez was buried at Odd Fellows Cemetery in Fresno, Fresno County.

Donio Robert Sanchez

Reedley, Fresno County, CA 93654

November 2, 1979

Fresno, Fresno County, California, United States

October 29, 2001

Kaweah Health Medical Center in Visalia, Tulare County, California, 93291, United States

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Donio R Sanchez Donio Sanchez (1979 - 2001)

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Donio Robert Sanchez's History: 1979 - 2001

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Introduction

Donio Robert Sanchez was born to Donna (Boyd) Casillas. He had siblings Dyanna Hernandez and Derrick Sanchez, as well as two other brothers. He also had a half-sister. Donio Sanchez was shot in the right side of his head, just above his ear, after an argument on April 17, 2001 with another man. They were outside of a home in the 200 block of "U" Street in Fresno, California. He was admitted a few hours later, still alive, to University Medical Center in Fresno. At that point, Donio began having seizures and slipped into a coma. After undergoing more than six hours of surgery to remove a blood clot on his brain, he remained in the coma for 16 weeks and was called the "miracle child" because he came out of the trauma, breathing on his own. The family began to hope that he would return home, healed. He was even allowed to briefly leave care and go to Cornerstone Church with them. Several weeks after attending church, however, he died from complications. The hospital drama and the following ordeal were captured by a film crew working for TLC - The Learning Channel. They were filming "Trauma: Life in the ER" and the episode on Donio aired on October 22, 2001. Donio never married and had no children. To read a complete report of the incident, including Donio's recover and decline and the resolution of the case, see Fresno man dies 2 1/2 months after pulling out.
11/2

1979

Birthday

November 2, 1979

Birthdate

Fresno, Fresno County, California United States

Birthplace

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Ethnicity & Family History

Donio was of Hispanic heritage.
Nationality & Locations

Donio was born in Fresno, California and was raised in Fresno. He was a lifelong resident of the Fresno area.
Early Life & Education

Born and raised in Fresno, California, Donio attended Washington Union High School in Fresno.
Religious Beliefs

Donio was a member of Cornerstone Church in Fresno, California, where his funeral service was held.
Personal Life & Family

Donio Robert Sanchez was born to Donna (Boyd) Casillas. He had a sister, Dyanna Hernandez, and a brother, Derrick Sanchez, as well as two more brothers. He also had a half-sister. Donio was visiting a friend on U Street in Fresno, California when a two year old argument re-ignited with another man. The other man took out a gun and shot Donio in the right temple, just above his ear. Donio was in a coma for sixteen weeks after the shooting, then died 2 1/2 months after coming out of the coma. See Donio R Sanchez: Obituary.
10/29

2001

Death

October 29, 2001

Death date

homicide: bullet wound in the head.

Cause of death

Kaweah Health Medical Center in Visalia, Tulare County, California 93291, United States
Death location

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Gravesite & Burial

mm/dd/yyyy
Funeral date
Odd Fellows Cemetery in Fresno, Fresno County, CA
Burial location
Obituary

SANCHEZ, DONIO ROBERT - Services for Donio Robert Sanchez, 21, of Reedley will be at 2 p.m. Friday at Cornerstone Church. Mr. Sanchez died Monday. Visitation will be from noon to 7 p.m. today at Lisle Funeral Home. - The Fresno Bee (Fresno, California) Thursday, November 1, 1001 on page 20.

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Donio R Sanchez lived 46 years shorter than the average family member when died at the age of 21.

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3 Memories, Stories & Photos about Donio

Kathy Pinna

32.7k+ favorites

10/08/2024

Fresno Bee Obituary photo

The photo of Donio R Sanchez included in his 2001 obituary in the Fresno Bee, Fresno, California.

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

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Washington Union High School - Donio Sanchez

Kathy Pinna

32.7k+ favorites

10/08/2024

Washington Union High School - Donio Sanchez

A 1995 yearbook photo of Donio Sanchez at Washington Union High School in Fresno, California.

Date & Place: circa 1995 in California United States

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Kathy Pinna

32.7k+ favorites

03/17/2023

Fresno man dies 2 1/2 months after pulling out

. . of a 16-week coma.

The following article appeared in The Fresno Bee (Fresno, California) on Friday, November 2, 2001, by Louis Galvan:

For several weeks after he came out of a 16 - week coma, Donio Robert Sanchez of Fresno was known as the "miracle child" as he appeared to be recovering well from a bullet wound in the head. The miracle, however, ended Monday when Sanchez died at Kaweah Delta Hospital in Visalia from complications associated with the shooting, making him the city of Fresno's 33rd homicide victim this year, authorities reported Thursday.

And today, on what would've been his 22nd birthday, Sanchez will be buried in Odd Fellows Cemetery in Fresno after funeral services are held at Cornerstone Church, beginning at 2 p.m.

Sanchez was not given much of a chance to live after he was shot. He was wounded on the right side of his head just above his ear during an argument April 17 with another man outside a home in the 200 block of U Street. A few hours after he was admitted to University Medical Center, he started having seizures, slipped into a coma and underwent more than six hours of surgery to remove a blood clot in his brain, his mother, Donna Casillas of Reedley, recalled Thursday. She was with family members and friends at Lisle Funeral Home to view her son's body.

The hospital drama and the family's ordeal were captured that evening on film by a television crew working for The Learning Channel series "Trauma: Life in the ER," a documentary program that puts cameras in emergency rooms. The episode featuring UMC was aired Oct. 22. Dyanna Hernandez, 29, Sanchez's sister, said her brother remained in a coma after the surgery, hooked up to a life-support system, and that doctors really didn't expect him to survive. But, Casillas said, family members and friends prayed day and night, and no one gave up hope.

On June 1, Sanchez was transferred to Exeter Memorial Hospital, where he stayed hooked up to a life-support system and the staff couldn't do much more than monitor his vital signs, move his limbs and make him as comfortable as possible, his family said. Little by little, however, Sanchez appeared to be improving, and he was taken off life support after he started breathing on his on. "On Aug. 7, he woke up," Hernandez said, checking her notes. After that, said the family, Sanchez continued to make progress. He started rehabilitation treatment and soon was able to communicate by shaking or nodding his had to ye-or-no questions. "He was aware of everything and remembered everyone and everything from the past," Hernandez said of her brother.

That's when the staff at Exeter Memorial started calling him "the miracle child." The family made him an "ABC board," and he was able to put words and sentences together by pointing at the letters, his mother, Casillas said. "He told me that when he was in a coma he knew who I was and that he could hear me,' Casillas said. "He talked about his dreams and about wanting to go home."

By late September and early October, she said, the family had made plans to take him home. He was even allowed to leave the hospital with his family on three Sundays to visit Cornerstone Church, wher he had bene an active member before the shooting. In mid-October, however, Sanchez's condition started to turn around. He developed pneumonias and spent about a week at Kaweah Delta Hospital. And then on Oct.25, his family said, he started having seizures again, stopped breathing and was again admitted to Kaweah Delta. He was declared brain-dead Mondayk and taken off his life-support system, his mother said.

"God wanted him," said a brother, Derrick Sanchez, 19. Casillas, 45, said she is grateful to God for the extra time she was given to spend with her son. And, she said, she also is convinced God had a good reason for finally taking her son from her. "My son was a very caring and loving person," she said. And that is why, in his memory, the family donated his heart, liver, kidneys and pancreas, she said. "His dying saved other lives," she said.

The killing remains under investigation. Police, confirming information provided by the family, said a suspect is in custody on other charges, the Fresno County District Attorney's Office is reviewing the case and murder charges are pending. The name of the suspect was not released. Investigators said the shooting happened after Sanchez went to U Street to visit a friend. There, police said, he encountered a man with whom he had had an altercation about two years earlier. Words were reportedly exchanged, and other man pulled out a gun, shot Sanchez, and fled.

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Donio Sanchez's Family Tree & Friends

Donio Sanchez's Family Tree

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Donio R Sanchez Nov 2, 1979 - Oct 29, 2001

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Other Biographies

Other Sanchez Family Biographies

Perlman, Nancy (Born Sep 6, 1967) Sanchez, Charles (Aug 31, 1930 - Oct 11, 2008) Sanchez, Jean (Oct 9, 1936 - Jan 25, 2009) Sanchez, Tanya (Aug 22, 1957 - Feb 14, 2006) Sanchez, Arnulfo (Nov 15, 1970 - Jul 3, 1993) Sanchez, Jeanne (Dec 18, 1930 - Oct 26, 2007) Sanchez, Zola (May 25, 1902 - Oct 1977) Sanchez, Barbara (May 28, 1930 - Mar 15, 2009) Sanchez Alejandro, Juan (Apr 2, 1938 - Aug 11, 2011) Sanchez, Kenneth (Mar 5, 1910 - Mar 2, 1980)

Sanchez, Manuel (Oct 19, 1904 - Feb 13, 1988) Sanchez, Victorio (Aug 30, 1892 - Apr 1970) Sanchez, Louise (Nov 25, 1911 - Oct 20, 2003) Sanchez, Carlos (Feb 1, 1983 - Sep 20, 2005) Sanchez, Delia (Mar 27, 1980 - Dec 26, 2008) Sanchez Frometa, Andres (Apr 28, 2006 - Apr 19, 2007) Sanchez, Daniel (Apr 10, 1934 - Aug 3, 2001) Sanchez, Rosa (Mar 13, 1900 - Oct 1978) Sanchez, Amalia (Aug 13, 1928 - Sep 29, 2002) Sanchez, Mercedes (Apr 5, 1918 - May 9, 2005)

About the AncientFaces Community

Donio R Sanchez 1979 - 2001

Donio Robert Sanchez's History: 1979 - 2001

Introduction

Birthday

Ethnicity & Family History

Nationality & Locations

Early Life & Education

Religious Beliefs

Personal Life & Family

Death

Gravesite & Burial

Obituary

3 Memories, Stories & Photos about Donio

Donio Sanchez's Family Tree & Friends

Donio Sanchez's Family Tree

Donio's Friends

Other Sanchez Family Biographies