Community still grieves 2 years after Parkland shooting, join together to make schools safer

A moment of silence across Florida honoring the 17 victims who died in Parkland two years ago today.

At 2:21 p.m. on Valentine’s Day 2018, surveillance video captured confessed shooter Nikolas Cruz opening fire into classrooms at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

Friday, the community is paying their respects at a memorial there as survivors and families try to heal.

In a park less than 10 minutes away from the high school, people came to be part of acts of service and love to honor those 17 victims.

Everyone we spoke to was still in disbelief, not only that it happened, but that somehow it’s been two years.

Wendy Behrend is the school crossing guard for MSDHS. She said she was standing out by the school’s sign when it happened.

“We were standing right there, talking, waiting for the kids to come out and this time they didn’t come out and we heard the shots,” she said. “Those sounds, I keep hearing them in my head and they brought out kids who were bleeding and there was a triage set up right here.”

“I can’t fathom the feelings that people went through that, you know, two years later and it’s still a fresh thing in people’s minds,” said Hailey Jacobsen, a student at MSDHS.

Emma Velez, also a student at the high school, said her science teacher was there and was talking about how scary it was.

“When they had us for the moment of silence, I just, I couldn’t handle it,” she said. “I think that was the most depressing part of the day, the moment of silence,” Jacobsen said.

“I come back because I love the children, I do it for them. They have my heart,” Behrend said. “It’s about protecting our children and keeping them safe.”

It’s a difficult day, of course, for the families of those 17 people shot and killed.