Principal Matt DeBoer, head of Annunciation Catholic School, praised his staff for their brave response when a shooter opened fire during a school wide Mass on Wednesday, August 27.
“Within seconds of this situation beginning, our teachers were heroes,” said DeBoer, his voice wavering with emotion. DeBoer was speaking at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon outside of Annunciation Parish.
“Children were ducked down, adults were protecting children, older children were protecting younger children, and as we heard earlier, it could have been significantly worse without their heroic action.”
“This was a nightmare, but we call our staff the dream team,” he said.
The school community "lost two angels today," he said, and he asked people to pray for the students who remained in the hospital. The school year had begun on Monday.
In addition to the two children who were killed, there were 17 people injured, 14 of whom range from age 6 to 15. Three others were parishioners in their 80s. All are expected to survive, he said.
Hope
The theme of this school year, said DeBoer, was taken from Jeremiah: "A future filled with hope."
Today, he said, finding this hope would prove to be a challenge. But moving forward, he expects his school community will remain strong, and changes to occur.
"We can't change the past, but we can do something about the future," he said.
"There's an African proverb that says, 'When you pray, move your feet.' So I beg you, I ask you to please pray. But don't stop with your words. Let's make a difference and support this community, these children, these families, these teachers. Never again."
"I love you Annunciation Family, I'm with you, and we will be stronger when this is done," said DeBoer.
