A Poem on the 6th Anniversary of the Chardon High School Massacre

Can you believe it? School massacres are becoming routine in the USA! Here is a poem I wrote this week on the 6th anniversary of the massacre at Chardon High School--in Geauga County, Ohio, my home. My nephew Dillon Coughlin was in the cafeteria when this happened.

The Chardon High School Massacre—6 Years Later

It doesn’t even count as mass murder,

Only three children dead, another paralyzed,

Another gravely wounded, a sixth nicked.

The shooter, T.J. Lane, an insecure boy from a destroyed family,

Shot up his table in the cafeteria before classes began.

A 22-caliber handgun—almost quaint in this brave new world

Where children are mowed down with weapons of war.

At least two hero teachers, Frank Hall, chasing down the shooter,

And Joe Ricci, running in to a hallway where bullets were flying,

Rescuing Nick Walczak, the boy permanently paralyzed.

Three boys lay mortally wounded, Danny Parmertor,

Russell King, Jr., and Demetrius Hewlin.

Joy Rickers wounded, Nate Mueller grazed.

Two funerals at St. Mary’s Church, across the street from the high school,

Thousands of people forming a human chain to protect the funeral mass

From threatened protest by Westboro Baptist Church.

The community did everything it could think of to support the students,

Their families, and the families of the deceased, but . . .

The spirits and bodies and dreams and hopes of so many

Were shredded by unfeeling bullets fired

By the desperately unhappy boy, who

Will spend the rest of his days in prison.

                                    Robert M. Coughlin / February 27, 2018

Gun Policy: Trying to Influence It

St. Mary Parishioners Try to Influence Governmental Policy on Guns

American Catholic Bishops have spoken out clearly on gun violence and too-easy access to deadly weapons. Echoing Pope Francis’s call for mercy and peacebuilding in our communities, the Bishops have asked that America implement reasonable regulations on firearms, such as: requiring universal background checks for all gun purchases; limiting civilian access to high-capacity weapons and ammunition magazines; making gun trafficking a federal crime; and improving mental health care for those who may be prone to violence.

To this end, three St. Mary parishioners, Krista Zivkovich, Dan Bergen, and myself, and the leader of the Cleveland Diocese COAR ministry, Mary Stevenson, met on January 27^th with Nick Ciofani, assistant to US Representative David Joyce. The meeting was held in Mr. Joyce’s Painesville office and lasted an hour. We introduced ourselves to Mr. Ciofani and were struck by all the personal connections we had to him and his family. Then we each proceeded to tell our stories why we were interested in this issue. The stories were riveting. I told the story told of my nephew Dillon Coughlin being in the Chardon High school cafeteria during the mass shooting that took place in 2012, leaving three students dead and one paralyzed for life. I also told of gun suicides of Lakeland College colleagues: our long-time psychology professor, a campus police officer, and one of my creative writing students. These tragic deaths profoundly affected me, my friends and family. Dan told of his wife’s work as an emergency room nurse and all the terrible shootings she had to deal with over the years. Mary Stevenson, the representative from the diocese’s COAR office, told how she herself had been shot in 1988, and the lifelong physical injuries she lives with. Krista told of her best friend’s suicide, a friend who was her son’s Godmother. In an astonishing twist of fate, that suicide victim was also the Godmother of Nick, Representative Joyce’s aide.

After telling our personal stories, we presented petitions signed by 134 St. Mary parishioners asking for reasonable limitations on gun availability. And we asked Nick to present these to Representative Joyce along with our hope that action could be taken in the future on these issues.

We left the meeting with no guarantees. But we did establish a relationship with Representative Joyce and his aide Nick Ciofani, and we did make clear the wishes of American Bishops and many St. Mary parishioners. We will continue to nurture this connection with our representative and keep trying to advocate for reasonable gun safety regulations. Our goal is in line with the goals of Pope Francis, the American Bishops, and many St. Mary parishioners: a safer, more merciful, and more just community. We are trying to do our part in building the Beloved Community, the Kingdom of God on Earth.

Postrcript: The petitions presented to Representative David Joyce have also been sent to Senators Sherrod Brown and Rob Portman and to state legislators, Kenny Yuko and John Rogers. Let’s hope that they pay attention to the wishes of the American Catholic Bishops and many members of St. Mary’s Church in Painesville, Ohio.

Broken Hearts in Chardon

Yesterday was a sad day in Chardon, in Geauga County, in Northeast Ohio. Thomas ("TJ") Lane was sentenced for his murder of three innocent Chardon High School students, the crippling of another one, and the wounding of two others.

At the sentencing Lane proceeded to unbutton his dress shirt, revealing an undershirt with the word "Killer" scrawled on it. And then he uttered a disgusting obscenity to the families of the dead and wounded, while giving them the finger.

It appeared that those in the courtroom were too stunned to believe their ears and eyes. And it all seemed to happen too quickly to usher Lane out of the courtroom and back to the jail.

The effect was absolutely stunning. It was a slap in the face to those already deeply mourning. Some family members of the victims made statements after TJ Lane's display, and he sat there smirking at them, almost mocking them. I don't know how Dina Parmetor (mother of the murdered Danny Parmetor) held up.

We want Mr. and Mrs. Parmetor, and the parents, relatives, and friends of all the victims to know: we honor you, we honor your dead and wounded children. We will always mourn the loss. We will help you restore your lives.

A Prayer for Chardon

A Prayer for Chardon

Gracious God, Lord of All,

We thank you for this day and for your grace.

And we ask you, on this the first anniversary of that awful day, to bless the victims of the Chardon High School shooting—bless Danny, Demetrius, and Russell. Bring them into your Beloved Community. Please help Nick recover from his injuries and live a good and productive life. We ask you to help the others who were wounded, and all those wounded in spirit. Bless their families.

We even ask you to bless T.J. Lane, his parents, grandparents, family, and friends. Bring your redemption and forgiveness.

Good Lord, help us to find a way to heal the victims and find a way to prevent such as this from ever happening again.

Finally, Loving God, thank you for Chardon, our home. Continue to bless our Community.

Amen.

Bob Coughlin

February 27, 2013

Remembering Chardon

A year ago this morning, right around 7:45 am, I drove west on US Route 6 in Chardon, Ohio, heading for work. Right around the time I passed Maple Avenue, about a third of a mile from Chardon High School, I started hearing confusing radio reports about a possible shooting at the school two of my daughters had attended. I continued down Rt 44, which is called Center Street in Chardon, passing the Giant Eagle and Walmart right around the time an emergency medical helicopter was landing thereabouts.

The end result was a slaughter of three young lives, Danny Parmertor, Russell King Jr, and Demetrius Hewlin; the serious injury to Nick Walczak; and injuries to Joy Rickers and Nate Mueller. The shooter was TJ Lane, who yesterday pleaded guilty to the murders.

How many people were really injured and powerfully affected by this event--that can never be said with any certainty. I've seen Mr. and Mrs. Parmertor in church and watched an interview of them on television this morning. You can still see the deep pain and sorrow in their faces. We want Mr. and Mrs. Parmetor, as well as the parents, families, and friends of all the victims (and even the shooter, TJ Lane, and his family) to know that we are with them, we share their pain, we will continue helping them rebuild their lives.

We will never forget their loved ones. We will do all we can to prevent something like this from happening again.

Coach Frank Hall's Speech (Video from ABC News)

Chardon High Students Return to School, Coach Frank Hall Hailed as a Hero | Video - ABC News

Two of the Chardon High School Heroes: Coach Frank Hall and Mr. Joseph Ricci

The stories about this terrible past Monday, February 27, 2012, at Chardon High School are becoming somewhat clearer. The final toll seems to be three dead (Danny Parmertor, Russell King, and Demetrius Hewlin); one released from the hospital (Joy Rickers); one still hospitalized with severe spinal cord trauma (Nick Walczak). And that is not to mentioned Nate Mueller, grazed by a bullet on his right ear, and the hundreds of students, teachers, school workers, firefighters, police, ambulance personnel, helicopter personnel, and hospital workers involved. The ripples go further: the families, friends, Chardon alumni--even reaching to the Governor of Ohio, John Kasich, who attended the Wednesday evening prayer vigil at St. Mary's, and President Obama, who phoned the Chardon High School principal. All deeds, good and evil, have these ripple effects.

Coach Frank Hall, one of the heroes of this tragedy, spoke yesterday at a press conference held in front of the high school. Coach Hall is fairly young, a big man, not a polished public speaker. But his short speech yesterday was one of the most beautiful and eloquent I have ever heard. One of his remarks was so poignant: "To the families of Danny, Demetrius, and Russell, I want you to know that I was with them. I prayed with them. I wiped their tears. And I want you to know God was with them."

Coach Hall accompanied these boys in their final terrifying journey. It's often the hardest and best thing a human being can do.

Of course coach Hall didn't even mention the other astonishing thing he did: he chased the gunman, who was shooting at him, out of the building. Astonishing, almost reckless courage!

I also heard that Mr. Joseph Ricci, a math teacher at the high school that two of my daughters had had, was also a hero. Apparently the gunman, T.J. Lane, chased Nick Walczak down a hallway, shooting him three times, in the back, the neck, and the head. Mr. Ricci went out of the classroom where he and his students were barricaded, pulled Nick into the safety of the room, and offered what first aid he could as they awaited ambulances.

So many stories are circulating; some will prove true and some will prove false. It does seem that T.J. Lane might have been traumatized and abused as a young boy. And there is a story out there about a triggering event, where T.J was rightly told that he was no longer to see a girl younger than himself. Still, the mysteries may never unravel--neither the mystery of such a crime, nor the mystery of such heroism.

One final thought: beginning tomorrow, the funerals for the three boys will take place at my church, St. Mary's Chardon. The mother of the second boy to die, Phyllis Ferguson, found out about the shooting as she attended morning mass at St. Mary's. This past Wednesday, a vigil service was held at St. Mary's; thousands of people came and even the governor spoke. St. Mary's is playing a key role in the healing of our town.

The Chardon High School Shooting

This morning at 7:50 a.m. I was driving through Chardon Square; about a quarter of a mile away, a student (alleged to be T.J. Lane) was running away after shooting 5 classmates in the Chardon High School cafeteria; one boy, Daniel Parmertor, lay mortally wounded on the cafeteria floor; two other boys, Russell King and Demetrius Hewlin, were critically wounded, and a couple other students had less serious wounds (Nate Mueller was the name of a boy grazed on his right ear; Nickolas Walczak has spinal cord trauma--his life was saved by math teacher Joseph Ricci; a girl was also wounded and has now been released from the hospital). The 911 call went to the police at 7:38 a.m. and shortly after that reports were on the radio stations. I listened to 100.7 FM as I drove to work as someone described ambulances coming to the local Walmart store and as a medical helicopter landed to evacuate seriously wounded kids to Metro Hospital in Cleveland. That's when I knew it was bad--Metro has a trauma ER unit that sees the most serious cases in the area. As it happened, one student died at Metro; two others are in very serious condition--and we pray that they survive. [We learned the next day that these two boys, Russell King and Demetrius Hewlin, died from their wounds].

My nephew Dillon Coughlin was in the cafeteria when the shooting took place. If I heard the story right, Dillon led classmates into an adjacent room, where they barricaded the door with a piano. There were many courageous and even heroic actions at the high school. I hear that a teacher (it might have been Coach Frank Hall) was involved in chasing after the shooter and comforting the severely wounded students. Other teachers (Mr. Joseph Ricci is one), janitors, and students acted heroically--we may never know all their names. Teachers and other school workers have the instincts of parents--they will risk their own lives to save their students.

From everything I have heard, it seems that teachers, administrators, and police handled this terrible situation correctly. Now all adults in the area must help the children, teachers, police, rescue workers and others involved process this tragedy. There can be a delayed reaction and PTSD in situations like this.

Everyone who lives in the Chardon area will know someone involved in this shooting. My daughter was friends with the aunt of the alleged shooter. The dead boy lived in my brother Jim's neighborhood. This is a small and tight community. We all share in the tragedy. We will pray for everyone tomorrow evening at 7 p.m. at St. Mary's Church.