Photos Courtesy of a Columbine Site
April 20th marked the 27th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting. A tragedy that shocked millions not only in the U.S, but around the world. This massacre was, at the time, one of the deadliest mass shootings to happen at a high school in U.S history.
It was a cool and sunny “beautiful” spring day in the mountains of Littleton Colorado, the first warm day of the year. in fact, many would not need a jacket to step outside. As everyone made their way into school that morning, teachers proceeded with their daily morning routine which included grading papers and organizing classroom situations, while students were catching up with their friends. Beneath the bright skies of Colorado, staff and students alike carried on with their day, completely oblivious to the tragic events that would soon take place.
Dylan Klebold (17) and Eric Harris (18), both seniors who attended Columbine High School, were the two perpetrators responsible for this devastation, killing 12 students and 1 teacher, before turning the gun on themselves. That morning, they walked into school side-by-side, with the intention to end the lives of hundreds using bombs and firearms. That morning, when they arrived at school, they had placed homemade propane bombs in the cafeteria, set to go off at 11:17am, but when it backfired, they resorted to using their guns. Prior to the shooting, they filmed a “goodbye” tape in Eric’s basement, later referred to as the “Basement Tapes,” containing them both apologizing to their parents for the trouble that would soon follow.
Rachel Joy Scott was a student also attending Columbine and was the first victim. She’s remembered all these years later, not only because she was a victim, but because of the kindness that she showed to others during her time on earth, and her faith, which she took great pride in. Prior to being killed, she was reportedly sitting on the grass outside the school’s entrance accompanied by a friend when Harris approached her and questioned her faith, asking if she believed in God. She responded with a yes, resulting in her death. An essay that Scott wrote before her killing, contains the following writing, “I have this theory that if one person can go out of their way to show compassion, it will start a chain reaction of kindness,” a quote that now covers the wall in the MK Senior-Y.
Honoring Columbine At MK:
In it’s wake, Rachel’s Challenge is a non-profit organization created by her family, to honor her legacy of kindness, and prevent bullying and suicide. It was on Thursday, Oct. 21 2010 that the Rachel’s Challenge organization paid MK a visit. They shared with prior students an essay Rachel wrote in eleventh grade, entitled, “My Ethics, My Code Of Life” about how “kindness and compassion are important aspects of everyday life.” Rachel’s beliefs stemmed from the idea that “…people should not be judged based on their appearance, ethnicity, or by their first impressions.” Former MK student, who was a junior at the time of this presentation, Connor Manning shared, “The presentation was extremely good and I learned that something as little as a compliment can make a person’s day.” Previous SRO, officer Scott Torkos explained the five challenges Rachel produced in her journal. Her first challenge was to “Look for the best in others and eliminate prejudice,” the second, “Dare to dream and set goals,” challenge three “Choose positive influences,” her fourth, “Kind words and actions,” and finally challenge five, “start a chain reaction with family and friends.” Officer Torkos stated, “With a smile and hello to someone in the hallway, you might just start a chain reaction”.
The active shooter and lockdown drills that schools practice today were introduced following the shooting at Columbine. As bullying was in this case, the cause of the shooting, many initiatives were taken such as enacting anti-bullying laws and adopting threat assessment protocols. The SpeakUp reminder that’s sent out every month by the counseling office, allows students to report any concerns students have regarding themselves, a friend, or anyone in school.
It’s important to not only remember those who made an impact, negative or positive, but to remember all the lives that were lost on this day in 1999 and continue to take actions to promote a safe and healthy learning environment at our own school.
