Houston woman among those injured in Charlottesville

HOUSTON (FOX 26) - Singing together, crowds met in downtown Houston for a vigil for Charlottesville. Although the cities are on different sides of the country, they both have something in common.

Natalie Romero, 20, graduated from Bellaire High School and attends college now at Virginia. Thursday was the last time her mother Ericka Chavez saw her daughter, she was leaving to go back up north for the fall semester. Romero even told her mother she would be participating in Saturday's protest against the white nationalist rally.

"All I said was just be careful," says Chavez.

Hours after it started her mother had learned that she was one of the victims that got struck by a car. She is currently in the hospital and suffering from head injuries, including a cracked skull.

"It did hurt, it hurt me, when I saw her picture on Snapchat around 1 or 2 in the morning her bloody face, I started crying, I started screaming, just feeling bad because I couldn't go there and be with my daughter," says Chavez.

Many of Romero's close friends back home found out what happened on social media.

"I think it's just unreal to me that these types of things occur in the United States of America," says Naureen Ali, Romero's program manager with EMERGE, a college prep program.

"It was very shocking and very disheartening to know that someone that you care for, almost like a little sister, is hurt," says family friend Ximena Magana.

Her mom says she is proud of her daughter and that she and her friends back home in Houston will continue to support her.

"I'm proud of her, I'm proud of her every single minute, no matter what she does, I know she's doing something good," says Chavez.