MINNEAPOLIS — In the vaulted church of a Catholic school in Minneapolis, the pews were packed with teachers, parents and schoolchildren listening to a psalm on the third day of the new school year.
“For you darkness itself is not dark, and night shines as the day,” a church member read to about 200 students Wednesday morning as sun streamed through stained glass windows.
Just before the congregants were to proclaim “Alleluia,” bullets blasted through the windows.
“Down! Everybody down!” someone shouted as children ducked for cover behind wooden pews from a barrage of gunfire. One student threw himself on top of a friend and was shot in the back. A youth minister called her husband to say goodbye as bullets flew.
People used a wood plank to barricade a door and fled to a gymnasium. Sixth grader Chloe Francoual raced down a set of stairs and left behind a classmate in the rush before hiding in a room with a table barricading the door. She’d later tell her father that she thought she was going to die.
People are also reading… How a small-town Iowa student is shaping the future of rural medicine Cedar Falls firefighters rescue 2 people stranded on the river One person dead, several injured in truck crash near Tripoli Waterloo woman dies after vehicle rolls over her in driveway accident All-In Grocers purchase still underway, set back by buyer’s health issues Cedar Ridge Christian thanks God for more room to grow in new school year Estate of murdered Traer farmer seeks return of insurance funds Man who lost sheriff’s primary charged with impersonating sheriff Waterloo man arrested in overnight chase As luck would have it, Waterloo sisters give birth 13 hours apart at MercyOne Trapped osprey freed from Cedar Falls cell tower, but dies after rescue Restaurant inspection update: Mold, expired food and ‘deceased pests’ reported High School Football: Dunkerton cancels varsity football season High School Football: Grundy Center is primed for another state run Hudson suspicious device ‘rendered safe’ by Waterloo bomb squad
The shooting went on for several minutes, according to a man living near the church, who said he heard as many as 50 shots.
Two children, 8 and 10, were killed in the latest horrific school shooting in the United States, this time inside a church emblazoned with the words “This is the house of God and the Gate of Heaven.” Seventeen others were wounded, including kids as young as 6 and parishioners in their 80s.
Dozens of law enforcement officers soon arrived to the school. Police said the suspect, Robin Westman, 23, was found dead by suicide behind the church. Westman had been a student and member of the Annunciation church in the past and his mother worked for the parish, Minneapolis police chief Brian O’Hara said on NBC’s “TODAY” show Thursday. No motive has been revealed.
Saved by a friend
The student whose friend shielded him, fifth grader Weston Halsne, told reporters in the aftermath outside the church that he sat just a few feet from the windows shattered by the blasts.
“My friend Victor, like, saved me, though, because he laid on top of me,” the 10-year-old said. “He’s really brave, and I hope he’s good in the hospital.”
His mother met him outside, wrapping him in a hug.
Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Feed | SoundStack | All Of Our Podcasts
Fourteen of the wounded victims were kids, ranging in age from 6 to 15. Police said all are expected to survive.
Vincent Francoual said his daughter still struggles to communicate clearly about the traumatizing scene, her father said.
“It’s too much to process,” he said.
Outside the church and school was a milling of emotion. Parents embraced children and other parents. Heavily armored law enforcement officers walked around as police cordoned off the crime scene.
Community shaken
Many knew each other well. It’s a tight-knit community built around the century-old Catholic school and parish, a city suburb better described as a small town. It’s towering belfry rings over the neighborhood of tidy homes and grass lawns, as it did after the shooting Wednesday.
God wasn’t far from people’s minds. Some had questions, others sought peace and healing.
“I’m just asking (God), ‘Why right now?’ It’s little kids,” said Aubrey Pannhoff, 16, a student at a nearby Catholic school who stood at the edge of the police cordon.
History’s first American Pope, Leo XIV, said he was praying for the families of those dead and injured in the “terrible tragedy.”
The Rev. Dennis Zehren was scheduled to give a sermon to the congregation that Wednesday. At the vigil held later that night, his face and eyes were red against his white vestments.
Vigil held for shooting victims; ‘SNL’ cast changes continue
On today’s episode:
Hundreds honor 2 children killed and 17 people wounded in shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic school CDC director Susan Monarez is fired and other agency leaders resign Iran’s rial currency falls to near-record lows on European ‘snapback’ sanctions threat Rwanda says 7 deportees arrived from the US in August under agreement with Washington Pope demands end to ‘collective punishment’ and forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza European Commission summons Russia’s top diplomat in Brussels over attack that damaged European Union building in Kyiv Denmark summons US envoy over claims of interference in Greenland. Trump extends control over Washington by taking management of Union Station away from Amtrak. FDA approves updated Pfizer COVID shots but limits access for some kids and adults. Top Florida official says ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ will likely be empty within days, email shows. Kilmar Abrego Garcia requests asylum in the US, hoping to prevent his deportation to Uganda. Trump’s Intel stake sparks cries of ‘socialism’ from his party, but he vows more deals are coming. A border agent is sentenced to prison time for ordering women to expose themselves. Florida to put man to death for a triple murder in record 11th execution this year. Minneapolis police shooting at Catholic school has left 3 dead, including shooter, and 17 injured. Firefighters try to corral California forest blaze as lightning strikes bring risk of new ignitions. Wall Street edges higher and pushes S&P 500 to another record. Emil Wakim exits ‘SNL’ after Devon Walker, as Lorne Michaels hints at more changes. Carlos Alcaraz and other top tennis stars secure second-round victories at the U.S. Open, an All-Star slugger is sidelined with a neck injury in baseball, a Super Bowl champion receiver is suspended, a record contract extension in the NFL and a key Ryder Cup roster update. US Open foes Taylor Townsend and Jelena Ostapenko get into a tense back-and-forth after match. Israel calls Gaza City evacuation ‘inevitable’ as US hosts talks on post-war Gaza. IAEA chief gets special police protection over threats as deadline approaches over Iran sanctions. Russian forces break into another region of Ukraine with peace efforts stuck.
— The Associated Press
About this program
Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.
Theme music
The News Tonight, used under license from Soundstripe. YouTube clearance: ZR2MOTROGI4XAHRX
Mediterranean rescues find 3 Sudanese sisters dead on an overcrowded migrant boat.
Lee Enterprises
When asked what he planned to tell the students on their first week of school, emotion choked his voice.
At the vigil, Archbishop Bernard Hebda addressed some 2,000 people, where psalms were sung and the silences burrowed deep in the wide room.
“I can understand why someone could resonate with the Psalmist’s question: ‘Why, oh God, have you forgotten me?'” Hebda said. “The example of Mary, a mother and a disciple who knew great suffering in her own life, should give each of us courage and hope.”
What we learned from analyzing 10 years of shooting data What we learned from analyzing 10 years of shooting data 0 Comments Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Be the first to know
Get local news delivered to your inbox!
Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Read more on Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier
