Colorado State Archives

Executive Orders from the Administration of Governor Bill Owens 1999-2005

The tragic events of the past 28 hours have shocked and horrified our entire state. As a nation, we are forced once again to ask where we have gone so wrong in raising children who would do such unspeakable acts of violence against their fellow students. All of us will look into our souls and our communities in the weeks ahead as we answer this question.

But today, our thoughts and prayers are with the students, faculty and families of Columbine High School. This morning, while I was coordinating the state's and private sector's response to this tragedy, my wife Frances was in Littleton meeting with school officials, Columbine students and their families. No words can convey the grief and deep sorrow felt today in that community.

However, I would like to share with you the words of a pastor ministering to Columbine students. In the face of such evil, many of us have asked: Where is God? This pastor, who was one of the first people on the scene yesterday, saw God in the teachers who risked their lives to save their students. God was present among the hundreds of law enforcement and emergency medic personnel who worked tireless to help the wounded. God was present among the complete strangers who opened their homes in the Leawood neighborhood or came to donate blood.

Such acts make us recognize that even in the face of unspeakable horror, we live in a state where people come together to care for those in crisis. Across Colorado, people are doing all they can to provide support to the students, faculty and families of Columbine High School. This is God's way of providing victim's and their families with a touch of grace and comfort. People across Colorado and the nation are beginning to wear blue and silver ribbons to recognize the terrible loss that not only Columbine High School has suffered, but that all of us as a nation suffer when the life of a treasured child is taken so brutally from us. At the state level, we are working closely with the Jefferson County School District, federal and local law enforcement agencies, the federal government and the community of Littleton to provide all the support and services possible.

I would like to briefly outline a few of the steps that we are taking and then answer your questions.

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