They were husbands and fathers described as heroes. Amin Abdullah, Mansour Kaziha and Nadir Awad sacrificed their lives to protect more than 100 children, when San Diego police say two teenage gunmen shot up the Islamic Center of San Diego last Monday.

“Let’s do something that will keep these men’s memories alive,” said former State Assemblywoman Lori Saldaña .

She’s leading the charge to explore the process of creating a tribute to the men and renaming Lindbergh Park.   It’s right next door to where the shooting happened.

“My idea is to honor their lives. It doesn’t have to be through their names on the name of the park. It could be through, like I say, a peace garden,” explained Saldaña.

Saldaña says she doesn’t have a name for the park. She’d leave that up to her Clairemont community to decide.

We polled some residents who say a tribute is fine, but renaming the park was met with mixed reviews

“I think it’s misguided,” said park goer Danny Duenes. “They want to rename a part of their parcel on that land it’s a big piece of land maybe an amphitheater after them or part of the school because they were protecting kids.”

“ I think it would help with inclusiveness. It’s a symbolic, you know, it is a symbolic gesture, but the ultimate phase of us to feel included is to bring justice to the issue,” said mosque member, Sarah Elfeky, MD.

Saldaña points to the park at the North Clairemont Community Park for precedent.

Last year, it was renamed in honor of San Diego police officer, Austin Machitar. He was killed in a car crash, in the line of duty, in 2024.

The former assemblymember also voiced concerns about reports of Lindbergh’s alleged antisemitic views.

“The nature of that community has changed, and we need a park that reflects that, ” said Saldaña

Online records show renaming a park already named after someone would take multiple steps, including  allowing heirs to voice their views publicly, approval from community planning groups, as well as approval from the director of parks and recreation.

It’s a potentially long process, but the thought is endearing to some in the Muslim community.  

“It touches me a lot. I mean, I think, you know, we just want to, we’re Americans, just like everybody else, ” said Elfeky.

Saldaña plans to present her plan during Wednesday’s budget hearings so city leaders can possibly consider what it would take to make the change.