On the fourteenth of February, a mass shooting occurred at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Seventeen people were killed and seventeen more were wounded in the event that shook the nation.

Exactly a month later, schools and students rallied to protest gun violence. Students walked out of schools to show their supports for victims of the injustice and call out for help.

However, Hazelwood Central added their own twist to this protest. Administrators and students alike devised a plan to remember the fallen students. At 1:25 on Wednesday, March 14th, students and faculty assembled at the football field for a remembrance ceremony.

Prior to the ceremony, the school’s principal Dr. Mitchell was in a tranquil mood. He stated that the entire event came from the administration wanting to assist the students with expressing their First Amendment rights.

During the event, there were a variety of performances. The Hazelwood Central choir opened with a performance of the national anthem. This was followed by a performance by Jonathan Heinle set to Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World.” Later on in the ceremony, certain students were allowed to perform their poems.

Zoe Mays’s poem was one that really stuck with the audience. 

“Zoes poem was strong and made me very supportive towards the ceremony,” said senior Devin Matteoni.

The poems were followed up by the remembrance ceremony for the dead students. There were seventeen desks lined up on the field to remember the seventeen lives lost at Stoneman Douglas High. A rose and a name card was then put on each of the desks by students at Hazelwood Central High.

The event was concluded with a moment of silence and a musical performance by the Male Ensemble.

Senior Jalen Mathis was overwhelmed by the entire ceremony.

“The performances were outstanding and events like this only make us stronger,” he said.