March 14, 2018 will go down in history, here, and across the country. As school walkouts were planned from coast to coast, a few Wildcats decided to take an alternate route.
Members of student council met with administration after news of this nationwide protest hit social media. They wanted to do something but were unsure of how safe it would be to physically walk outside.
“It was all student led, all [student council] did was ask permission to use the gym,” senior student council representative Chloe Warmuskerken said.
In a promotional video released on March 9, seniors Gavyn Webb, Chloe Warmuskerken, Ellie Haveman and David Tay, with juniors Jake Domagalski and Lauren Davis outlined their hopes behind the event, entitled Honor The 17.
“The gym assembly was well put together with the video and the student council. So I knew who was behind it, I didn’t know who was behind the outside [protest],” junior Spencer Todd said.
Todd was one of the 250+ students who made their way to the gym after 2nd period.
In the event, the six leaders stood facing the bleachers. They first read the names and ages of the 17 people lost in the Parkland shooting, followed by a silent 17 seconds in honor of them.
Next, the student leaders listed 17 ways to live every day honoring the victims.
The goal of the demonstration was to remain non-partisan, focusing only on the lives lost. Keeping political views out of the conversation motivated more students to participate in the event.
“We didn’t want to divide anymore than the country is already divided,” Webb said. “We wanted to unite more than divide.”
While a number of students chose to stay inside purely because of the cold temperatures, many students favored the inside demonstration for its political-free message.
“[The indoor event] was more about the students that were lost,” senior Erin Walendzik said about her choice to go sit and listen in the gym.
The full presentation only lasted about five minutes in total, from the time David Tay started the introduction until students were released back to class. Many students were surprised by how short the demonstration was, but still commended the leaders for how it went.
“It was better than I expected, it was very moving,” Todd said.
No matter what students chose to do on March 14, whether go to the gym, walk outside, or refrain from any demonstration, the administration supported them.
“I think [administrators] did a very good job with handling the situation, with both walking out and the gym. They didn’t get mad at people for walking out, they allowed all opinions to be shared. It was all very positive,” senior Olivia Phaneuf said.
Video courtesy of MLive.