A Christian school that 'celebrates childhood' becomes killing scene in Nashville
Adds detail from relative of victim Mike Hill
By Sharon Bernstein
March 27 (Reuters) -The 200 young children enrolled at the Covenant School, a private Christian elementary school in Nashville, Tennessee, start each day with chapel and study the Bible twice a week.
"The beauty of a PreSchool-6th school is in its simplicity and innocence," the introductory paragraph of the school's website reads. "Students are free to be children."
On Monday, theschool became the site of the latest mass shooting in the U.S., when a 28-year-old former student opened fire with an assault weapon, killing three children and three adults before being shot dead by police.
The three students killed were all 9 years old:Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs and William Kinney.
The adults were headof school Katherine Koonce, 60, a pickleball enthusiast who had toldthe Nashville Tennessean she added the sport to the school's physical education initiatives; Cynthia Peak, who police said was believed to be a substitute teacher; and custodian Mike Hill, both 61.
The carnage made a stark and horrible contrast to the images of everyday life on the school's website and Facebook page.
Just aday before the shooting, administrators posted on Facebook pictures of staff members sharing gifts and snacks as they celebrated the impending birth of the son of the assistant head of school.
The school also posted a notice that it was looking to hire two new employees - a kindergarten aide and a fourth-gradeteacher. And photos proudly showed boys competing in the opening day of the school's first golf season at the local Cheekwood Golf Course.
"Go Knights!" the posting cheered.
"Great job, boys," a community member wrote.
For Megan Hill, the day's agony unfolded over six long hours, marked by posts on Facebook in which she identified herself as the niece of one of the victims.
"Shooting at the school where my Dad, my uncle and my stepmom work please pray right now," she wrote at about noon local time.
Six hours later, she posted an update.
"I’m just in shock and disbelief," wrote Hill, who did not respond to requests for comment from Reuters. "My heart is broken I do not understand why someone would shoot up a school with precious babies inside."
"My uncle lost his life in this shooting today," she wrote. "My moms brother Lord help me and my family please pray for all my cousins."
The school is affiliated with Covenant Presbyterian Church, part of an evangelical movement that branched off from the more liberal Presbyterian Church in 1981. It offers enrichment classes in art, science and technology, leadership and music.
The school's motto is "intentionality, authenticity, curiosity," according to its website, which is filled with video images of smiling students singing, dancing and tumbling in a gymnasium. Its focus, the website says, is on "shepherding hearts, empowering minds and celebrating childhood."
Classes are small, with an average size of 12 students, about a quarter of whom receive financial aid, the website says. Tuition starts at $11,500 per year for kindergarten and rises to $16,500 for fifth and sixth grade.
No one answered the phone or responded to emails at the school on Monday.
Woman shoots dead 3 children, 3 adults at Christian school in TennesseenL1N35Z1GC
Biden calls for assault weapons ban after Nashville shootingnL1N35Z1WC
FACTBOX-Major school shootings in the United StatesnL1N35Z1Y5
Reporting by Sharon Bernstein in Sacramento, California
Editing by Rosalba O'Brien, Matthew Lewis and Leslie Adler
آخر الأخبار
إخلاء المسؤولية: تتيح كيانات XM Group خدمة تنفيذية فقط والدخول إلى منصة تداولنا عبر الإنترنت، مما يسمح للشخص بمشاهدة و/أو استخدام المحتوى المتاح على موقع الويب أو عن طريقه، وهذا المحتوى لا يراد به التغيير أو التوسع عن ذلك. يخضع هذا الدخول والاستخدام دائماً لما يلي: (1) الشروط والأحكام؛ (2) تحذيرات المخاطر؛ (3) إخلاء المسؤولية الكامل. لذلك يُقدم هذا المحتوى على أنه ليس أكثر من معلومات عامة. تحديداً، يرجى الانتباه إلى أن المحتوى المتاح على منصة تداولنا عبر الإنترنت ليس طلباً أو عرضاً لدخول أي معاملات في الأسواق المالية. التداول في أي سوق مالي به مخاطرة عالية برأس مالك.
جميع المواد المنشورة على منصة تداولنا مخصصة للأغراض التعليمية/المعلوماتية فقط ولا تحتوي - ولا ينبغي اعتبار أنها تحتوي - على نصائح أو توصيات مالية أو ضريبية أو تجارية، أو سجلاً لأسعار تداولنا، أو عرضاً أو طلباً لأي معاملة في أي صكوك مالية أو عروض ترويجية مالية لا داعي لها.
أي محتوى تابع للغير بالإضافة إلى المحتوى الذي أعدته XM، مثل الآراء، والأخبار، والأبحاث، والتحليلات والأسعار وغيرها من المعلومات أو روابط مواقع تابعة للغير وواردة في هذا الموقع تُقدم لك "كما هي"، كتعليق عام على السوق ولا تعتبر نصيحة استثمارية. يجب ألا يُفسر أي محتوى على أنه بحث استثماري، وأن تلاحظ وتقبل أن المحتوى غير مُعدٍ وفقاً للمتطلبات القانونية المصممة لتعزيز استقلالية البحث الاستثماري، وبالتالي، فهو بمثابة تواصل تسويقي بموجب القوانين واللوائح ذات الصلة. فضلاً تأكد من أنك قد قرأت وفهمت الإخطار بالبحوث الاستثمارية غير المستقلة والتحذير من مخاطر المعلومات السابقة، والذي يمكنك الاطلاع عليه هنا.
