JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colorado — Of all the ways to honor the 13 victims of the Columbine High School shootings in 1999, writing letters is one way COVID-19 cannot stop students like Kim Modler and Danielle Killeen.
"In the past, it's always been going out into your community, but obviously that can't happen," said high school junior Killeen.
They are both drafting letters to residents of senior housing and to essential workers.
"I think it's really important that they know that we are all in this together even though we can't be there with them," Modler, a junior, said.
Modler also made masks in addition to her letters.
"This is our fourth year for the Columbine Day of Service," said social studies teacher Jeff Garkow.
Garkow is leading the program. He says students never even considered canceling the day of service due to social distancing.
"We have so many people who work at our school, who are connected to Columbine. We have 21 staff members who were either students at Columbine on April 20,1999 or were teachers," Garkow said. "On April 20, 1999, I was in fifth grade right down the road."
In addition to the letters, Garkow said students are also sewing protective gear, holding neighborhood food drives and doing yard work for elderly neighbors.
"I think we're honestly going to have even more people taking part in acts of service and kindness and gratitude this year than even years' past," Garkow said.
These are actions and words that Modler believes Columbine needs to do to honor the shooting victims.
"I think it's really important to have this day as a day of remembrance, but also a day that shows the community what the Rebel family is," Modler said.
If you want to help out, you can join their virtual service projects by visiting: https://www.columbineserves.org/.
Garkow says this year students from 10 other states and from across the world as far as Tanzania are joining Columbine's Day of Service.
"Even though we don’t have the ideal circumstances, it’s still important to try to help out in any way that we can," Killeen said. "Even now in these times more than ever, it’s important to reach out to people."
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