Two of the victims were coaches. One was a student who played trombone in the school band. Another proudly wore his ROTC uniform. Still another…
Two of the victims were coaches. One was a student who played trombone in the school band. Another proudly wore his ROTC uniform. Still another loved soccer. And most were so very young.
The gunman who opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, wiped out lives, and left families and friends struggling to cope after America’s latest mass shooting. Here is a look at the 17 people police say were killed in the massacre:
„SELFLESS SERVICE“
Alaina Petty „loved to serve,“ her family said.
The 14-year-old was one of three freshmen members of the school’s Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps who was killed.
She also spent countless hours volunteering for the „Helping Hands“ program of her Mormon church. After Hurricane Irma struck Florida, she helped people clean up and rebuild their lives, her family said.
„Her selfless service brought peace and joy to those that had lost everything during the storm,“ a statement from her family said. „It is important to sum up all that Alaina was and meant to her family and friends. Alaina was a vibrant and determined young woman, loved by all who knew her.“
Family members spoke of Alaina’s love of dogs and of her confidence and wit during her funeral Monday at the Church of Jesus of Latter-day Saints in Coral Springs. About 1,500 mourners attended.
Her father, Ryan Petty, spoke about the support his family and the families of the other victims have received from their church, the community and from around the country and the world.
Alaina’s older sister, Meghan, told those assembled for the funeral: „The only thing I want to say about what happened to her is that it was a very, very ugly act that was committed by one person but as you look around at how many people who are here… there are thousands more who are doing something really beautiful for my sister.“
___
„THE ENERGY IN THE ROOM“
Jaime Guttenberg’s father, Fred Guttenberg, remembers his daughter as being „the life of the party,“ that person who made people laugh and „the energy in the room.“
With dark hair and a big smile, the 14-year-old loved to dance and hoped to become an occupational therapist and mom, an aunt said. Now, Jaime is among the dead at her school.
„Back in October I lost my brother to cancer from his service in 9/11. That at the time seemed impossible to me. It made no sense. It couldn’t happen and it couldn’t get worse. This is worse,“ Guttenburg told hundreds gathered a community memorial honoring the victims.
Fighting away tears, Guttenberg said he couldn’t recall if he told his daughter he loved her as she headed to school Wednesday. He called it „unfathomable“ that she was slain in a place where she was supposed to be safe.
„I don’t know what I do next,“ said Guttenberg. „My wife is home. We are broken. But I can tell you, don’t tell me there’s no such thing as gun violence. It happened in Parkland.“
___
GRANDFATHER SAYS HEROIC COACH „WAS WONDERFUL“
The grandfather of a coach hailed as a hero in the Florida school shooting said he takes some comfort knowing how his grandson died.
Assistant football coach Aaron Feis, who also served as a security specialist at the school, was shot to death while shielding students from bullets.
His grandfather, Raymond Feis of West Islip, New York, said his grandson „was wonderful.“
„Everyone loved him and he was a jolly person. What takes away some of the pain is that he was a hero,“ Feis said.
Feis, 37, lived with his grandparent for about 10 years as a child. He graduated from the school in 1999 and worked mainly with the junior varsity, living in nearby Coral Springs with his wife and daughter.
„He always wanted to come back to New York because he grew up here,“ said Feis. „And he would come here with his 8-year-old daughter. And they were supposed to come up again now. It’s horrific.“
___
HUGE CROWD FOR FIRST FUNERAL
At the first funeral for a Stoneman Douglas victim, mourners of 14-year-old Alyssa Alhadeff packed the Star of David chapel, its foyer and stood 15-deep outside.
Those outside stood respectfully, straining to hear voices chanting Jewish prayers and remembering the star soccer player as having „the strongest personality,“ and as a creative writer with a memorable smile.
The strongest male voice told mourners: „I ask you to live your life in full for Alyssa. Be strong for Alyssa. Be kind for Alyssa.“
Earlier, her distraught mother screamed into CNN’s camera demanding that President Donald Trump take action after the shooting.
„President Trump, you say what can you do?“ Lori Alhadeff said. „You can stop the guns from getting into these children’s hands! Put metal detectors at every entrance to the schools. What can you do? You can do a lot! This is not fair to our families and our children go to school and have to get killed!“
___
FRIEND WON’T GET TO SAY ‚I GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL‘
Joaquin Oliver, 17, was known by his nickname „Guac,“ short for „guacamole,“ because many struggled to pronounce his given name.
„My friend will literally never get to say, ‚I graduated high school,'“ said Tyra Hemans, a 19-year-old who said they had been friends since freshmen year.
She last saw him at school, before the shooting.
„It was just a brief ‚Happy Valentine’s,'“ she said. „He was with his girlfriend and I was just like, ‚Oh my God, you guys are so cute.'“
She added, „He’s just a goofball. He’s the only kid you’d know that would dye his hair bleach-blond, walk around school, put some tiger stripes in and just be unique. He was a unique soul.“
Oliver used to play soccer, the goalkeeper position in community games, said friend Daniel Rodriguez, and he ran for homecoming prince last year.
Oliver, whose family is Venezuelan, sometimes cooked and shared the experience on Snapchat, along with lessons he learned from his grandmother, like how to grill a steak using a rock to properly seal the meat.
___
ATHLETIC DIRECTOR ‚WAS JUST AMAZING‘
Chris Hixon, a married father of two and the school’s athletic director, wasn’t shy about jumping in wherever he was needed, said friend and one-time colleague Dianne Sanzari.
Hixon, 49, belonged to a Roman Catholic church in Hollywood. The Archdiocese of Miami confirmed his death Thursday.
When a volleyball team needed a fill-in coach, Hixon took over; the same thing happened with the wrestling team, Sanzari said. When the school needed someone to patrol the campus and monitor threats as a security specialist, Hixon did that, too.
It was in that security role that Hixon apparently came within range of the shooter.
An online fundraising campaign to establish a scholarship in Hixon’s honor has raised more than $13,000.
___
ANGER OVER DEATH OF COLLEGE-BOUND SENIOR
Senior Meadow Pollack, 18, already had decided to attend Lynn University in Boca Raton, but she was still the baby of her family as the youngest of three children. At her funeral, father Andrew Pollack’s grief and anger boiled over with more than 1,000 mourners including Gov. Rick Scott packed into Temple K’ol Tikvah.
Andrew Pollack slowly climbed the steps to the synagogue’s altar, looked down at the plain pine coffin of his 18-year-old daughter, Meadow, and then told the crowd, „I am very angry and upset about what transpired.“
„You killed my kid!“ he yelled, referring to 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, who is charged with the shooting Wednesday that left 17 dead. „My kid is dead. It goes through my head all day and all night. I keep hearing it. This is just unimaginable that I will never see my princess again.“
Others described a young woman who was „beautiful inside and out,“ who loved to hug and smile. Rabbi Bradd Boxman urged mourners to do an act of kindness in Pollack’s memory.
___
GEOGRAPHY TEACHER HELPED STUDENTS
Geography teacher and cross-country coach Scott Beigel, 35, helped students enter a locked classroom to avoid the gunman, and paid for the brave act with his life.
„If the shooter would have come into the room, I probably wouldn’t be speaking to you now,“ student Kelsey Friend told Good Morning America.
Beigel „unlocked the door and let us in,“ she said. „I thought he was behind me, but he wasn’t. When he opened the door he had to relock it so we could stay safe, but he didn’t get a chance to.“
Student Bruna Oliveda said she saw Beigel blocking the door.
„I don’t know how we’re alive,“ she said.
Beigel worked as a counselor at Camp Starlight, which is located in rural Pennsylvania and posted a tribute to him on its Facebook page.
___
BALLOONS FOR THE VICTIMS
Martin Duque, 14, was one of Isaac Briones‘ best friends.
„He was like, one of the nicest people I knew,“ said Briones, 15. „He was so caring.“
Briones said he last saw Martin the day of the shooting during first period.
„We were just playing around, talking about jokes and stuff,“ said Isaac, who was outside the school Thursday with others holding a group of white balloons for the victims.
Martin was one of three freshmen members of the Junior ROTC program at the school who were killed.
