MARYSVILLE, Wash., (Reuters) – Members of a tight-knit Native American community in Washington state were struggling yesterday to comprehend how a life-long friendship among cousins ended with one of them gunning down the other two, along with three friends, in a high school cafeteria.
The shooter and one girl, identified by a family friend as Zoe Galasso, were killed, while the other freshmen students were gravely wounded in the Friday morning shooting at Marysville-Pilchuck High School, an hour’s drive north of Seattle.
The rampage, the latest in a string of violent incidents that have prompted national debate about school safety and gun control, sent shock waves through the Tulalip Tribes, a Native American organization that operates two casinos and an outlet mall, and beyond to Marysville, a town of about 63,000.
On Sunday afternoon, hundreds of students and their families packed a campus gym for speeches by school and area leaders in a mood marked by somber reflection, nagging questions, and a desire for solidarity between the neighboring but interwoven communities.
“Our community has taken a real hard kick in the belly,” said Tony Hatch, a relative of one of the victims. “Our kids have all grown up together. Our communities are building that bond together. We’re really damaged right now.”