[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 114 (Thursday, August 5, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1759]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         COLUMBINE HIGH SCHOOL

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                        HON. THOMAS G. TANCREDO

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, August 5, 1999

  Mr. TANCREDO. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise with a heavy heart, but a 
heart that is buoyed by thoughts of hope and inspiration. In a little 
over a week, the first day of school begins at Columbine High School in 
Littleton, Colorado, which is located in my district.
  We can all remember the first day of school and the excitement that 
went along with it. The anticipation for the year ahead and what it 
would bring. The exhilarating feeling of seeing friends, joining new 
clubs and sports teams, and being a part of something special. I doubt 
that many of us would ever trade our experiences in high school for 
anything.
  Tragically, more than 2,000 students will begin school at Columbine 
without twelve of their classmates, and one teacher. These individuals 
are not among them not because they have graduated and gone onto 
college or moved to another town and now attend another school. They 
are not pursuing passions such as being a Navy pilot, fishing, singing, 
playing football, traveling to France, acting, playing music, working 
as a missionary, playing volleyball, praying, or being a father. They 
are not with them, because they were the victims of a senseless and 
destructive act that took place April 20, 1999.
  Among these students will be twenty-two individuals who were wounded 
during the events of April 20th and are hoping to return to school this 
year. These students and teachers face challenges in the coming days 
and beyond that no one should have to face in the future. Richard 
Castaldo, Sean Graves, Anne Marie Hochhalter, Lance Kirklin, Kasey 
Ruegsegger, Patrick Ireland, Mark Taylor, Jennifer Doyle, Makai Hall, 
Mark Kintgen, Nicole, Nowlen, Danny Steepleton, Brian Anderson, Stephen 
Austin Eubanks, Nicholas Foss, Joyce Jankowski, Adam Kyler, Stephanie 
Munson, Patricia Nielsen, Charles Simmons, Evan Todd, and Michael 
Johnson are strong enough to stand up and begin another chapter in 
their lives, a chapter that we will help them write by giving them 
every opportunity to have a year of safe and enjoyable memories. Three 
of the wounded, Valeen Schnurr, Lisa Kreutz, and Jeanna Park, received 
their diplomas last Spring, and have now begun the important step of 
continuing on with life after such a tragic event.
  This tragedy has caused us as Americans to reevaluate and reflect on 
our own moral and social values and to reexamine the role that we play 
as parents, relatives, and family members in the lives of our nation's 
children. This tragedy has driven many of us to work to bring not only 
healing, but also a reformation of our way of life. Everyone who lives 
in America felt what happened to those students. The phrase, ``it can't 
happen in my backyard'' is now gone for the residents of the Sixth 
District.
  I do, however, feel hope and inspiration today. I feel a sense of 
hope when I see and hear the determination and genuine concern that 
individuals have when discussing our schools and a desire to make them 
a safe and prosperous environment. I feel a great sense of inspiration 
in these students and teachers who are walking back through the same 
doors they ran out on April 20, 1999. In fact, as of August 2, no 
students had applied for a transfer from Columbine. We are witnessing 
real courage.
  I ask that my colleagues in the United States Congress, any my fellow 
citizens, pray for the students of Columbine High School as they start 
a new year. Pray that the smiles of youth return to these students. 
Pray that we have the power and the faith to do our part to ensure that 
this horrible violation of innocence is never repeated again.
  And, most of all, pray for the families of: Cassie Bernall, Steven 
Curnow, Corey DePooter, Kelly Fleming, Matthew Kechter, Daniel Mauser, 
Daniel Rohrbough, Rachel Scott, Isaiah Shoels, John Tomlin, Lauren 
Townsend, Kyle Velazques, and Dave Sanders, the twelve students and one 
teacher who will not be starting school this year.

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