Petition seeks military funeral for Douglas junior cadet who ‘died a hero’

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. >> Marjory Stoneman Douglas High student Peter Wang died in his JROTC uniform Wednesday helping others escape the gunfire at the school. Now a move is underway to see that he receives a military funeral for his effort.

A petition has been filed at WhiteHouse.gov with a “We the People” request to “Allow for Cadet Peter Wang to receive a Full Honors Military Burial.”

As of tonight, 34,418 people had signed the petition on behalf of Wang, 15, but it needs 100,000 signatures for there to be a response from the White House.

The petition says: “He was a JROTC Cadet who was last seen, in uniform, holding doors open and thus allowing other students, teachers and staff to flee to safety. Wang was killed in the process. His selfless and heroic actions have led to the survival of dozens in the area. Wang died a hero, and deserves to be treated as such, and deserves a full honors military burial.”

He wanted to attend the U.S. Military Academy West Point.

Lin Chen wasn’t surprised to hear that her cousin was seen helping others flee.

“He is so brave. He is the person who is genuinely kind to everyone,” she said. “He doesn’t care about popularity. He always liked to cheer people up. He is like the big brother everyone wished they had.”

She told the Sun-Sentinel that Wang had two brothers, ages 11 and 5, and his parents, too upset to talk, own a restaurant in West Palm Beach. They had planned to celebrate Chinese New Year’s eve Thursday.

“I feel the family can never be the same,” she said.

Wang’s funeral is scheduled for Tuesday at Kraeer Funeral Home in Coral Springs. He will be laid to rest at Bailey Memorial Gardens in North Lauderdale.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.