NORTH KANSAS CITY, Mo. — North Kansas City Ofc. Daniel Vasquez trained at several gyms around the Kansas City area.
Vasquez's workout buddies say he was always encouraging them, especially with his big energy.
Now, those close to Vasquez say they are mourning how his life was cut short.
It didn't take long after the Blue Alert went out Tuesday morning for Eddie Barajas to learn it involved his longtime training partner.
"No matter how dark the energy was, or how dark the room was, he lit it all up," Barajas said. "He lit the whole world up."
Barajas first met Vasquez back in 2017 at the Strong Barbell Club.
"He would hype me up, I would hype him up, we pushed each other," Barajas said. "We're definitely very motivated individuals and when we combined each other, everyone around us felt the energy."
He adds Vasquez conditioned himself in the gym to meet the physical demand required of a police officer.
"It was a dream that he's wanting for a long time, and I know he did it for many reasons," Barajas said. "Not only for patriotism, but for his family."
The news that Vasquez was killed during a traffic stop rippled through Kansas City's power -lifting and fitness community.
"He's happy, go lucky, fun loving and a child at heart," J.P. Price, owner of the Strong Barbell Club said. "It's hard to believe he is 32, because he could have been much younger, because that's how his soul felt."
Hours after he passed away, his friends gathered at the gym Tuesday evening to honor Vasquez with a moment of silence and drinking his favorite beer, Modelo.
"You never know when your time's up. And I never thought that yesterday, Danny's time would be up," Price said. "And it puts things in perspective for me. And I just hope that everybody's able to really remember all the great things about Danny."
A lot of folks in the fitness community like so many others plan to attend the services for Vasquez.
Officials said during a news conference Wednesday morning that his family was meeting with the funeral home later in the day to get those plans in order.
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