Since news broke of the heartbreaking mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, shocked people around the world have sent condolences to the Parkland, Fla. school. THS students added their voices by sending a very special banner conveying the Arrows’ heartfelt messages of love and support to their far-away peers.

Members of THS’ Jr. Optimist (JO) club organized the effort after their advisor, Paula Crew, contacted Stoneman Douglas’ Principal, Ty Thompson, with her condolences and news that the JO members planned to send cards to the school.

“He said the cards would be great. He also asked if we would be willing to make a banner and laminate it so they could hang it up in their school.”

The JO club ran with the idea and created a banner with the emblems of both THS and Stoneman Douglas HS joined together with a heart that says, “Tecumseh Arrows Stand with Stoneman Douglas. Positive. Passionate. Proud.” THS students were all invited to sign their names and write messages on the banner. A video of JO members offering a personal message while holding the banner is also being sent to the school.

Crew says even the simple act of writing your name on a banner can give you an outlet to share your feelings, and for students dealing with the news of a tragedy like a school shooting, signing a banner “can be healing.”

In addition to the school banner, the JO members each wrote a personal letter to a family of one of the students killed during the attack.

“There were 14 kids killed, and there were 14 of us at the JO meeting that night. We took it as a sign that we should each write a letter,” explains JO President, David Gehret.

Each JO chose a victim and learned as much as they could about them before writing the letters.

“We know there are no words that can make up for what they lost, but we wanted to let the families know that their children would not be forgotten and that they would live on in each of us,” says Gehret.

Gehret says JO members discussed their feelings about the Stoneman Douglas tragedy and what it means for them as students.

“We decided that to stop going to school and stop getting an education means they (school shooters) win. We can’t stop doing what we do each day because we are afraid...Knowing the safety plans and knowing what you can do if something happens help you know you can have some control.”

Gehret also says that the JO club offers a place for kids who feel isolated and depressed—the two things he feels almost every school shooter has had in common before carrying out their plans. “The JO club is trying to make the world a better place, and that means at school too. This club is a safe place for everyone, and it can make you feel good knowing you are helping someone else.”

As passionate discussions regarding what “needs to be done” to prevent another school shooting rage on, and as Tecumseh’s students deal with their feelings in the Stoneman Douglas aftermath, Tecumseh’s JO members say they want two very important things for the Stoneman Douglas victims’ families and friends.

“Our wish for them is that they can eventually find some sense of normalcy...and to know that they are not alone.”

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