Siblings had tight-knit relationship

PLUMMER - Eleana Maravilla was a bubbly 5-year-old who always had a story to tell.

Her 9-year-old brother, Jose Reyes, is remembered as being honest, full of joy and having a love of football.

The lives of the Plummer-area siblings were cut far too short Sunday afternoon after they fell through the ice of a pond while looking for their dog.

"(Eleana's) relationship with her brother was so touching to see," said Mike Crabtree, principal at Lakeside Elementary in Plummer, where the kids attended school. "When he was in football, he would give her a hug on the bus before going to football."

The children were found in a pond on Old Agency Loop Road by their grandmother and Coeur d'Alene Tribe member Rose Gonzales. They were transported to Kootenai Health, where they were pronounced dead.

After Gonzales pulled the children from the pond, she was treated for hypothermia at the hospital and released.

The size of the pond fluctuates throughout the year, but authorities estimate the pond to be about 6 feet deep this time of year.

Crabtree said students drew pictures and made cards for the family. The school has created a memory wall in its main hall as a result of the tragedy.

"(Eleana) loved school, her friends, her brother and her Grandma Rose," Crabtree said.

Jose had a "booming" personality, Crabtree said.

"It was impossible not to feel of that when you were around him," he said. "He was full of fun... His classmates remembered how he always greeted them with, 'Hi, friend!'

"When he made a boyish mistake, he would always admit what he had done. If he did something that hurt someone else, on reflection, he was so sad and remorseful."

There will be a Rosary and wake tonight at 7 at the Rose Creek Longhouse in Worley. Thursday, there will be Mass at the Rose Creek Longhouse at 10 a.m., followed by interment at Desmet Cemetery. A meal will be served at the Rose Creek Longhouse after interment.