He had all the gumption in the world to get ahead.
He mastered whatever he set out to do.
He did not have the cowardice to say, ‘I can’t do it'
Daniel was born on Father’s Day, June 16, 1996, to Inès Gallardo Martìnez and Jaime Solìs Serrano, of Zihuatanejo, Guerrero.
The oldest of three children, Daniel was a source of guidance and protection for his younger siblings, Mauricio and Magaly, and he endeavored to set a good example for them. Magaly was especially attached to Daniel, who was like a second father to her; he took care of her, helped her to do her homework, and even took her with him to his soccer matches.
Daniel excelled in school, played soccer avidly and stood out among his friends for his quiet and reserved personality, as well as for his curly hair, which earned him the nickname "el borre” (the sheep). To his grandparents, he was known as “El Becerro,” or “The Young Bull.”
Daniel was a dedicated student who also earned a living since adolescence: he was an assistant of masonry, carpentry and mechanics. For vacation, Daniel loved to visit his paternal grandparents’ small farm in the Costa Grande toward Acapulco, and tend to their cows.
Having an uncle who had attended Ayotzinapa, Daniel was attracted to the school's reputation and history, and had the dream of becoming a teacher and working with children. Daniel’s completion of high school and acceptance into Ayotzinapa were great causes of celebration for the family, as neither of his parents had achieved a high school education. Daniel’s parents always conveyed to him the importance of higher education, and gave him their total support to study and get ahead in life.
On the night of September 26, 2014, Daniel was among a group of students who responded to distress calls from first-year students who were ambushed and trapped in Iguala at the intersection of Juan N. Álvarez and Periférifo Norte after they had commandeered buses to attend a protest the following week in Mexico City. Students back at Ayotzinapa organized and traveled to Iguala to help their schoolmates, who were under fire by municipal police.
Daniel and his peers arrived at approximately 11:15 pm, after the 43 students had been forcibly disappeared, and when remaining students were protecting the crime scene and preparing to hold a news conference with reporters and professors of the CETEG (State Coordinator of Education Workers in Guerrero). While they examined the scene, the fourth attack began as gunmen fired at the students at close range. Daniel Solís Gallardo and Julio César Ramírez Nava were killed within moments.
On November 13, 2014 the Daniel Solís Gallardo National Information Caravan, consisting of parents and relatives of the students, accompanied by students from 11 teacher training schools in Guerrero, traveled through the states of Morelos, Tlaxcala, Chiapas, and Oaxaca, meeting with members of local communities and social organizations. The eight-day tour culminated in a historic march through Mexico City on November 20, as Daniel’s caravan met up with those of Julio César Ramírez Nava and Julio Cesar Mondragón Fontes. Three brave young men whose paths eventually touched the entire world.
