The Principal of Annunciation Catholic School, Matthew DeBoer, penned a letter to Vice President JD Vance, recounting the day a gunman fired over 100 bullets through his church.
Writing about the children who held each other under the pews that day, DeBoer said, “Love was greater than fear. God was greater than evil in these minutes that felt like an eternity.”
The principal shared his heartbreak over the loss of 10-year-old Harper Moyski and 8-year-old Fletcher Merkel, and continued prayers for 12-year-old Sophia Forchas, who is still battling severe injuries in the hospital.
DeBoer’s letter also called for change, something he’s been doing since the attack.
“Let’s do something so that nobody has to do this again and let’s honor the kids lives who were stolen from them by doing this together,” DeBoer said in an interview with CBS News the day after the Aug. 27 shooting. “It’s my hope that, like we said yesterday, when you pray move your feet.”
That phrase, “When you pray, move your feet,” has united the Annunciation community in the days since the tragedy.
DeBoer went on to write, “May our faith inform our politics. May our beliefs inform our action. May our right to live matter more than someone’s right to access a tool for death.”
The vice president and second lady visited Annunciation Catholic Church on Wednesday, meeting with DeBoer, church leaders and the parents of both Moyski and Merkel.
“I think that there is obviously, there is a strong desire from across the political spectrum to do something so these shootings are less common,” Mr. Vance said shortly before leaving Minnesota.
Vance in a post on X Wednesday afternoon requested prayers for Forchas and for the focus to remain on the children, not the shooter.
Some parents are also asking for change, directing their concerns toward politicians, including the mother of 9-year-old Vivian St. Clair, who survived multiple bullet wounds.
“To our lawmakers and people in power, who the hell is going to do something? Who is going to make meaningful change and take tangible steps to break the cycle?” Malia Kimbrell, the mother of St. Clair, asked.
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