Two weeks after the death of 22-month-old Rudy Requejo-Ybarra Jr., the boy's family is celebrating and remembering the joy he brought into their lives, even as they continue to grieve.
“It’s hard because we knew he was our angel, but I don’t think we ever thought about the day that he would become an angel,†said Ebony Cotton, a family member on his father’s side.
The boy's death under the supervision of mother Brittany Cook and boyfriend Joshua Tackett is still under investigation by the Lincoln Police Department.
The boy died in an Omaha hospital on March 15 after suspected abuse at the hands of Tackett left him brain dead, according to court filings.
People are also reading…
Prosecutors last week charged Cook, a Lincoln woman, with child abuse resulting in death, a Class 1 felony punishable by 20 years to life in prison.
Tackett, 32, her boyfriend of two months, faces the same charge, in addition to two felony gun charges. Tackett's mother has been charged with felony evidence tampering in the case, according to court records.
Requejo Jr. had been separated from the father’s side of the family, who last saw him on Feb. 7. It had been even longer since the boy had seen his father, Rudy Requejo-Ybarra, who had been held at the Lancaster County jail since November on charges stemming from an unrelated case. Although the outcome of that case is still pending, Requejo-Ybarra had his bond reduced so he could be with his son in his final days.
Though still in shock, the family has pulled together over the past two weeks. Together, they’ve mourned, reminisced and made plans to keep the toddler’s memory alive.
Rudy Requejo Jr. was born in April 2021, spending his whole life in Lincoln. Throughout his brief life, the boy had a way of bringing his family members together, even during times of conflict.
For grandmother Cassandra Requejo, one of her fondest memories of Requejo Jr. was handing him to her mother during a birthday party in June 2021 for Requejo-Ybarra. The relationship between the two had been strained up until that point.
“We stood there and we looked at each other and we just cried,†Cassandra Requejo said as tears welled in her eyes. “I was able to put him in her arms, and I’ll just never forget that day.â€
In another instance, when Requejo-Ybarra and his younger brother Ruben were feuding, Cotton, Ruben’s wife, convinced him to go visit Requejo Jr.
In addition to bringing the two brothers together again, the visit was one of the first times that the younger Rudy, who was deaf from birth, was comfortable wearing his hearing-aid device, known as cochlear headphones.
“Because of my sister-in-law and my son, we were able to kind of connect again and talk and apologize for the way we treated each other,†Requejo-Ybarra said. “And when I saw my son sit there and just let those (headphones) be on and let (Ruben) do that, it was a surreal moment.â€
Cotton said the toddler, although generally reserved, had an infectious joy about him.
“Junior had a smile that was like gravity,†she said. “His eyes would just light up because he couldn’t hear, and it was just the way that he inspected the room. He was so invested in us; it just made you want to reach out to him, and he would just light up the room.â€
Requejo-Ybarra said he’s struggled thinking about all of the things he’ll never be able to do with his son, such as teaching him to work on cars, cheering him on in sports or even just cutting his hair.
“Those are just things that I was robbed of, and it hurts,†he said.
Aunt Michelle Rieflin and her husband had intended to learn American Sign Language so they would be able to communicate with their nephew as he grew older, and had hoped to bring him along on a family hiking trip in the Appalachian Mountains.
Cotton, who had her own daughter around the same time that Requejo Jr. was born, said he gave her hope, not just that she would be able to handle raising her own child, but that her daughter would have a friend for life.
“I dreamed that she would have this close bond with someone in the family,†Cotton said. “I feel like a lot of us feel robbed of Junior's smile and laughs, robbed of the young man we knew he would grow up to be.â€
Throughout the experience, Rieflin said the family has been shocked by and grateful for the support they have received, from friends as well as complete strangers.
“People just came and lifted us up, and you could feel that love,†she said. “I can’t even extend the gratitude that we have.â€
The contributions have included everything from cash donations and flowers to helping them with laundry, groceries and cooking food for them. A childhood friend of Cassandra Requejo even donated five trees to the Arbor Day Foundation in her grandson’s honor at Chippewa National Forest, which the family intends to visit in the future.
“That was just beautiful,†Cassandra Requejo said. “That was so amazing, it felt so good.â€
Further donations can be made to the family by contacting Liberty First bank at 402-465-1000 and asking about the Rudy Requejo Jr. Fund.
Although he’s gone, the family has no intentions of letting Requejo Jr.’s memory fade. They’ve already made plans to celebrate his upcoming birthday, a tradition they hope to maintain.
Requejo-Ybarra said he’s found closure in knowing that his son has been laid to rest. He described a vision told to him by his aunt, April Block, in which she said she encountered Requejo Jr., who shared a final few words for his father.
“He said, ‘I’m the hero that you said I was, because I can protect everyone now, and watch over them,’†Requejo-Ybarra said. “He got in his bed and started to go to sleep and everything was OK … he was happy, he didn’t remember anything. He was at peace.â€