Family remembers man shot, killed outside birthday party in Sunrise: ‘A gentle soul’

Family and friends gathered Sunday to remember the life of a man who was shot and killed outside of a birthday party in Sunrise.

According to Sunrise Police, officers received reports of a shooting outside a banquet hall at 6072 West Oakland Park Boulevard on Saturday night.

People nearby said a party was happening inside the venue when suddenly they heard back-to-back gunshots.

Police said one person was hurt. Family identified the victim as 48-year-old Kendrick English.

They said English did not survive his injuries.

On Sunday night, friends held a candlelit vigil to remember English. They said he was kind and well-known in the community, and question how he could have been a threat to whoever shot him, since he lived with significant paralysis and used an electric wheelchair.

“He was a gentle soul, a peaceful soul. The last person I thought this would happen to,” friend Alexis Dorrell said. “I just couldn’t believe it. I’m still – I just can’t believe it.”

Police arrested 26-year-old Francisco Sanchez in the shooting. He’s been charged with depraved and dangerous murder.

The area where English was shot was filled during the vigil with candles, balloons, and heavy hearts filled with grief.

“I’m not sure what the threat was,” friend Sheronda Williams-Perry said. “Why you would shoot a person three to five times, you know, that was helpless.”

Police haven’t said what led to the deadly shooting. But family said English was a father figure to many and a former football star for Stranahan High School. They say an old football injury is how he became paralyzed.

Now, many want him remembered not by how he died, but how he lived.

“It’s a terrible loss. It’s a terrible loss. He did not deserve that,” Williams-Perry said. “He was a dear friend and would give the shirt off his back. He’s gonna be missed deeply.”

Sanchez is being held at Broward County jail.