Pray for Oregon!
After a tragic senseless act of violence that claimed the lives of 5 people–including 3 young students–at Silver Rail Elementary School on Oct. 15, the entire community of Bend, Oregon is in mourning today.
We learned during a press conference yesterday that a 16-year old boy had forced his way into the school, firing bullets to get passed the locked doors. He killed 3 students, one 5-year old, 8, and 11-year old, alongside a teacher before he was killed after a bystander had witnessed him walking into the building with a gun.
Two people are still in critical condition including a teacher and a 7-year old student.
One teacher, Kathy Sheil Smith, witnessed the teen approaching and hurried to get her students in one corner of the classroom.
She told CNN she saw her students turn to God:
“Some kids were praying, some kids were consoling other kids.”
Shepherd to the local community, Bishop Thomas Hennen of the Diocese of Baker, released a statement:
“As bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Baker, which includes the city of Bend, I wish to express my deepest sympathy and heartfelt prayers for those whose lives were taken in the shooting at Silver
