'Great' dad. 'Caring' brother. Families mourn Georgia high school shooting victims.

ATHENS, Ga. — A rural Georgia community is mourning the loss of four people who were killed Wednesday after a 14-year-old student opened fire at a high school — sending students and staff rushing to shelter in their classrooms as schools throughout the county went into lockdown.

The four victims killed were identified as two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Winder, an Atlanta suburb of 18,300 people. The attack, which also injured eight students and one teacher, sent shock waves through the community.

Chris Hosey, director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, confirmed Wednesday night that 14-year-olds Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo and teachers Richard Aspinwall and Christina Irimie were killed in the shooting.

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith called the shooting "pure evil."

"This hits home for me because I was born and raised here," Smith said at an earlier news conference on Wednesday. "My heart hurts for these kids. My heart hurts for our community, but I want to make it very clear that hate will not prevail in this county. I want that to be very clear and known. Love will prevail over what happened today. I assure you of that."

Hundreds of community members gathered in downtown Winder for a vigil Wednesday night. Many held candles, bowing their heads and holding each other as they prayed for the lives lost in the tragic shooting.

Here's what we know so far about the victims:

Mason Schermerhorn, 14

Schermerhorn's family members shared photos of him on social media when they couldn’t contact him after the shooting.

On Facebook, friends described him as a sweet soul taken in a senseless act.

"He really enjoyed life," Doug Kilburn, who has known Schermerhorn’s mother for a decade, told The New York Times. "He always had an upbeat attitude about everything."

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Christian Angulo, 14

Angulo was a freshman at Apalachee High School, WAGA-TV reported. Friends of the 14-year-old described him as a free spirit with a "chill" attitude.

His older sister, Lisette, remembered Angulo as "very sweet and so caring," according to a GoFundMe page for Angulo's funeral services.

"He was so loved by many. His loss was so sudden and unexpected," Lisette Angulo wrote. "We are truly heartbroken. He really didn’t deserve this."

Richard Aspinwall, 39

Aspinwall taught math at Apalachee High School and was the school football team's defensive coordinator. Head coach Mike Hancock on Wednesday night said he was grieving the loss for the Winder community and Aspinwall's family.

"He was a great dad, man, and a great father," Hancock said. "He loved his two girls and he loved his wife. He did happen to love the game of football and he was well respected around this area."

"We've got a staff that's hurting," Hancock added. "This staff has been together for two years and Ricky has been a big part of it. It's tough."

Aspinwall, a native of Rome, Georgia, was one of Hancock's first hires when he took over Apalachee's program last season. Aspinwall came from Mountain View High School in Lawrenceville to serve as the defensive coordinator. Aspinwall also had a coaching stint at Dunwoody High School in DeKalb County, less than an hour from Winder.

The Mountain View High School Athletics shared condolences to the Apalachee community in a statement on Facebook.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of former Mountain View High School teacher and coach Ricky Aspinwall, who lost his life at Apalachee High School today," Mountain View High School Athletics said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with you all during this tragic time."

Buford High School football coach Brandon Gill shared on X that he was "unbelievably heartbroken over the loss of our dear friend."

"@CoachAwall …. He was truly as great as they come. Helluva human being. Would do anything for anyone. Amazing husband, father, teacher and coach. I’ll never forget you, brother!" Gill added.

Christina Irimie, 53

Irimie was a math teacher at Apalachee High School.

A professionally-trained traditional Romanian dancer, she was an active member of the local Romanian Orthodox community, said Nicolae Clempus, the pastor of Saint Mary Romanian Orthodox Church, 10 miles from Apalachee High School. Irimie attended its sister church, Saints Constantine and Helen Romanian Orthodox Church.

"We are pretty shocked about what happened," Clempus said. "We are all mourning for her."

Originally from Transylvania, Romania, Irimie moved to the U.S. with her husband, Dorin Irimie, more than two decades ago, Clempus said.

The church community will hold a memorial service this weekend.

"We are all getting together to pray for her family, to remember her, and to wait for their decision when the funeral service is going to be," he said.

A spokesperson for the Romanian embassy could not confirm if Irimie's first name is spelled Christina or Cristina.

Contributing: Sara Tidwell and Vanessa Countryman, Athens Banner-Herald

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Georgia high school shooting victims: Students and teachers mourned