Beloved Tejano Singer Selena Quintanilla's Final Resting Place Is as Beautiful as Her Music

The impact that singer Selena Quintanilla had on the world cannot be overstated. She was known as the Queen of Tejano music, but was sadly struck down at the height of her fame.

Selena was murdered by a former employee named Yolanda Saldivar after the singer discovered Saldivar had been stealing from her. The incident occurred on March 31, 1995, during a confrontation at a hotel in Corpus Christi, Texas. Saldivar fatally shot the woman whose trust she had already destroyed.

Selena was only 23 when she died, but had been making music with her family since she was a little girl. According to the Los Angeles Times, when Selena was killed, she was working on her first English-speaking album.

If the crossover was successful, many predicted she would join a pantheon of female artists that included Janet Jackson and Madonna. Decades later, fans visit the "Como la Flor" singer's grave to feel closer to her.

Selena is buried in Seaside Memorial Park in her hometown of Corpus Christi. Isaiah 25:8 is written in Spanish on the singer's grave. It translates to: He will actually swallow up death forever, and the Sovereign Lord Jehovah will certainly wipe the tears from all faces. In a photo posted to the SQP Fans Facebook group, fans kneel next to a temporary marker placed on her gravesite.

The person who shared the photo writes that a fence was later added because people kept writing on the marker.

One person commented that fans still write on the fence. Several people in the comments wrote they were lucky enough to visit Selena's grave before the fence was erected. One person said they used to help her family clean off the marker, adding that they were such nice people.

Pictures of Selena's grave posted to Reddit in 2022 show that the gravesite has been significantly built up since she died in 1995. A tree has been planted behind her marker, which now includes a carving of the singer's face. The marker only has her name carved into it, in Selena's handwriting.

A concrete path leads up to the fence around the marker. There are manicured bushes surrounding the grave, as well as a stone and wood fence on either side of the path.

According to the Corpus Christi Caller-Times, Selena's family sued the funeral home at Seaside Memorial Park after an employee allegedly took a photograph of the singer in her casket.

The suit was filed in 1997 following rumors that the "photos included embalming room photographs of Selena's nude corpse, and that they were being shown in local bars."

The lawsuit named Arnold Ortiz, a janitor at Seaside, as the person allegedly responsible for taking four photographs of Selena. The funeral home fired Ortiz and shared that he took the photos on April 2, 1995, the night before Selena was buried.

Her family dropped the lawsuit following a settlement for an undisclosed amount.