On September 4th, 2024, tragedy struck very close to WGHS. Apalachee High School (AHS) in Barrow County was involved in a shooting. The community surrounding AHS has rallied together to support the students and faculty.
by Ansleigh Hester  (image courtesy of 11Alive.com)
A Breakdown of the Event
On Wednesday, fourteen-year-old Colt Gray brought a firearm to the school. He intended to ruin the lives of the faculty and staff. At 10:20 a.m., the local sheriff's department responded to the Apalachee High School (AHS) distress call. Students and teachers went into a severe lockdown and the surrounding schools also were told to lockdown their classrooms. Police escorted Apalachee students to the football field. They waited there, hoping that their parents would bring them home. After the shooting, 9 were injured and 4 were pronounced deceased. “The dead were identified as two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Winder, about an hour’s drive from Atlanta. Killed were two other 14-year-olds, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, and instructors Richard Aspenwall and Christina Irimie, Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey said in a nighttime news conference,” NBC Washington states. One of Walnut Grove’s past coaches, David Phenix was also injured in this attack on the school. He was shot in the foot and hip. Extensive research shows that Coach Phenix is in stable condition and is recovering. Two of his students pressurized his wounds, so that he would not bleed to death. They saved his life. This past Friday, Colt and his father Colin Gray went to trial. Mr. Gray is being held partly responsible for the event at Apalachee because he supplied the gun which Colt used in the shooting. “Colt Gray, who has been charged with four counts of murder, is accused of using a semi-automatic assault-style rifle to kill two fellow students and two teachers Wednesday at Apalachee High School in Winder, outside Atlanta. His father, Colin Gray, faces related charges in the latest attempt by prosecutors to hold parents responsible for their children’s actions in school shootings,” AP News explains. Marcee Gray, the mother of Colt, claims that she received the text, “I’m sorry, Mom” from her son before the tragedy. "That text was enough to spur a call from Marcee Gray to her son’s school to warn about an unspecified “extreme emergency” at 9:50 a.m., according to call logs and a text exchange between Marcee Gray and her sister, who provided them to CNN,” CNN shares. Whether that’s the case or not, the community of Barrow County will forever be affected by the event at AHS. “You don’t have to have been physically injured in this to be a victim,” District Attorney Brad Smith said outside the Barrow County courthouse. “Everyone in this community is a victim. Every child in that school was a victim,” AP News says. 
WGHS Students Support Apalachee
Walnut Grove students feel sympathy towards the tragedy at Apalachee. Warriors express their fears, safety plans, and how they will support Apalachee. Junior, Aila Cerovic shares how she felt about the devastation. “It was a horrible incident. They felt scared, terrified, and I don't think I could ever [understand the full extent of the event] feel that,” Cerovic explains. Knowing that the school adds more security, makes her feel safer about the situation at Apalachee. “I feel extremely grateful that they could bring extra security. It would make me feel a lot more secure. Being able to go somewhere and have my teachers know where I am would keep me safe,” Cerovic says. Freshman Irman Numanovic gives insight into how he spreads awareness about the misfortune at Apalachee. “I've spread the word so that everyone knows what is happening,” Numanovic states. Spreading the word of the AHS’s testimonies will help the surrounding community understand their personal stories and how they were affected by the disaster. Jose Trejo-Sosa, a sophomore at WG, has a friend who goes to AHS. Trejo-Sosa expresses, “I had a friend that texted me: he said that he was afraid to be alone. He was so scared.” Trejo-Sosa has made himself available, giving his time to be there for his friend in this difficult time. “I've asked people if they are ok because I know people from there. I just want to make sure that they are ok,” Trejo-Sosa concludes.
 (photo courtesy of AtlantaFalcons.com)
Falcons Encourage Supporting Apalachee By: Makenzie Bass Many schools and teams across the state and country have banded together to give support and pray for AHS. Between gathering for prayer groups, creating memorials for lost lives, and spreading awareness across social media platforms, what happened at Apalachee will not go unheard. On their first game of the season, the Atlanta Falcons wore “Apalachee Wildcats” t-shirts during pregame warmups to spread awareness and hope for the situation. Sanford Stadium in Athens was booming on Saturday with prayers as people painted letters on their bodies to spell out, “Pray for AHS”. 
(photo courtesy of Jazmyne Black)
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9/14/2024