/Cape News




‘The Power of Us’ event rallies community support against teen gun violence 

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Kayla Rincon Miller was 15 when she left the Coralwood movie theater off Del Prado to walk to McDonald’s with two friends on March 1, 2024. Kayla was shot to death on the side of the road in what police say was an armed robbery. The two-year anniversary of Kayla’s death is Tuesday.  Pictured is a display at “The Power of Us,” a remembrance  that took place at the William ‘Bill’ Austin Youth Center Saturday afternoon.  
SARAH MCCORMICK 

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Luz Rincon, Kayla Rincon-Miller’s mother, and Tatyiana Rincon, Kayla’s older sister, embrace at  The Power of Us event at the William ‘Bill’ Austin Youth Center in Cape Coral on Saturday, March 14th. The event was the first for Kayla’s House, a new nonprofit organization focused on ending gun violence through education and prevention. 
SARAH MCCORMICK 

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Kayla’s friends were present at the event to honor Kayla’s legacy. The group consists, from left to right, of: Lillie, Lilliam, Vanessa, Ava, and Ximena.
SARAH MCCORMICK 

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 A sweet commemoration of handwritten notes on hearts from Kayla’s friends, family, and general community members sat outside of the Youth Center, holding sweet notes of endearment for a life gone too soon.  
SARAH MCCORMICK 
 


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Kayla Rincon Miller, 15, had a bright future ahead of her.

She did not live to see it

On March 17, 2024, Kayla died from gun violence, shot in an armed robbery on a Cape Coral street as she and two friends walked toward McDonalds after seeing a movie at Coralwood Center.

Kayla’s legacy, though, will live on.

Just shy of the two-year anniversary of her death, a remembrance called “The Power of Us”  took place at the William ‘Bill’ Austin Youth Center Saturday afternoon.  

The event was hosted by Kayla’s House, a new non-profit organization formed in November 2025 by Kayla’s family and friends in conjunction with SWFL Crime Stoppers.

Luz Rincon, Kayla’s mother, discussed the purpose of Kayla’s House.

“The past couple of years has been a rollercoaster for the family,” she said. “There are moments of emotions. It has its moments; there’s good and bad, but we are super excited and very optimistic about how we can help, and the families we can help, through Kayla’s House. It has helped pull us through our pain and our grief. I think every family that has faced what we have faced understands that there are moments of hurt and pain and sadness, but there are also good moments now, coming today, to be able to serve our community through Kayla’s House.” 

The mission of Kayla’s House is to bring awareness to gun violence, and to bring comfort to families. The hope is that, in the future, the organization will have its own center where services will be provided to youth and help steer their life in a better direction.  

Saturday’s remembrance included a Q&A session with the board of Kayla’s House — Sgt. Maris Lebid of the Cape Coral Police Department, Lt. Angelo Vaughn, Shawn Casey, Barber, Michelle Sargis of the Lee County School District and SWFL Crime Stoppers, and Lieutenant Jarvis Williams of Charlotte County Corrections.  

Fighting emotion with a smile, Rincon spoke about who Kayla was as a person, remembering special times they had together.

“Kayla was, as the kids say, a ‘vibe’. She was a little firecracker with a little sassiness, with a big heart. She was a typical 15-year-old child with a beautiful face and a beautiful smile. She loved being with her friends and hanging out, and music. Our favorite thing to do was shopping. She was an amazing kid.”  

During a beautiful and emotional butterfly release, Kayla’s friends and family opened pink envelopes one by one and butterflies emerged, flying high in memory of Kayla. Handwritten notes on hearts adorned a special memory board, and photos of Kayla, as well as butterfly adornments and flowers were on display. 

Kayla’s friends were present at the event, visibly emotional as they shared memories of her. One Ava, shared an observation she’s made of how she chooses to live life since Kayla’s passing.

“I try to live in the moment. I don’t take things for granted. She was taken away in literally the blink of an eye, and no one ever expected that. I have fun and do it while I can. I do it for her.” 

Another friend, Vanessa, said, “I try to live for her as the years go by. Like, prom and grad bash, graduation itself, she wasn’t able to do those things, so I tried to do them for her.” 

Lily said of missing Kayla, “Life is harder. Not necessarily harder, but, it’s hard to pretend it’s not hard. I try to put focus on the positive things, but, every now and then I’ll get that feeling where it’s like, dang, they’re not here anymore, and it’s really like a realization and you just have to take that and use it as strength.” 

Lilliam fought through tears as she spoke of Kayla.

“It’s definitely different. It’s not something easy to go through at such a young age. She was only 15. I was 16. She wasn’t even able to get a job yet. There’s things that she never got the chance to do, but now I get to do. So, I try to think of it as a positive. And I try to do it for her. Like, when I got a job, when I went to prom, when I graduated. For prom, I had put pictures in my nails for her and I used the same color theme she would have liked, which was pink. And, for graduation, I put pictures inside of my cap so I felt like she was there with me. It’s definitely something…you have to think on the bright side, and do what they would have wanted you to do, you know.” 

Trish Routte, of SWFL Crime Stoppers spoke to both Kayla’s memory and what those who love her, and miss her, hope will be her legacy.

“We just want people to remember Kayla, and her death,” Routte said. “This is something that we all need to take charge of. If you’re a parent, or a grandparent, aunt, uncle, and you have guns in your home, you need to remember to lock those guns up. And if you’re a teenager, you have the power to make a change. You have the power to make good choices. If you see something, we want you to report it to somebody. Don’t keep that information to yourself, because we don’t want another family, another friend, to have to go through the tragedy of what Kayla’s family and friends have to go through.” She went on to add, “That should never have happened. And we don’t want that to ever happen again.” 

Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence, gun-related incidents are the leading cause of death for child and teens surpassing deaths from car crashes and cancer. Gun related deaths have been on a steady uptick since 2014.  

Two teens were arrested in connection with Rincon-Miller’s death.

Thomas Stein and Christopher Horne Jr., who are both now 18, were given first degree murder indictments by a Lee County Grand Jury in late 2024.

They were also indicted on three counts of attempted robbery — possession of a firearm.

Horne Jr. pleaded no contest to second-degree murder charges in September of 2025. He is set to be sentenced on May 19 and could face up to 25 years in prison. As part of his plea, he must testify in the trial against Stein

Stein’s trial is set to begin on April 27.

“Our hope is that this young generation could really think twice about maybe picking up the gun and committing a crime, and that they would really think about their consequences in life,” Rincon said Saturday. “My heart goes out… people have asked me if I hate these kids. I don’t hate them. It’s sad. They are going to face maybe life in prison, and that their poor decision has caused them this. Our prayer is that this has impact, some way, somehow, and to bring a little bit of awareness.” 

Those who are interested in getting involved, or donating to Kayla’s House to help further the mission and help with hosting future events, can do so by visiting Kaylas-House.com. Or, to reach Kayla’s House via e-mail, you can contact welcome@kaylas-house.com.