By Dan Pfannenstein
It was Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2003.
I, like my other 16-year-old friends, was just sitting down to enjoy one of my favorite lunches of the month: turkey and gravy over mashed potatoes. I had just scoped out my table of friends and sat down, when over the loudspeaker our principal announced, “CODE RED, I repeat, CODE RED.”
His voice was notably troubled. I had no idea what a CODE RED was. None of us did. We didn’t have “active shooting drills” back then. Suddenly, a couple of teachers came busting through the cafeteria doors, urging us to follow them to the media center. They made sure to tell us to leave everything we had behind and run.
Within seconds, there was total chaos in the halls. We exited the cafeteria and made our way past the gymnasium entrance towards the media center. At the time, we had no idea that we passed right by one of the areas where a student was shot. At this point, we still didn’t really understand what was happening, but when we arrived at the media center, we were informed there had been a shooting.
We took cover under desks. My mind was spinning. Were any of my friends hit? What about my sister, a ninth grader? Was she OK? After some time had passed, we were ushered to the school auditorium where we were given additional instructions. We would soon exit the high school and run to the nearby elementary school where we would load buses that would return us to our homes.
When we all got to the elementary school, we were ardently looking for our siblings and friends. There she was, my sister, safe and sound. Thank God. We loaded our buses and returned home. The image of my mother running out of the house sends chills down my spine to this day. For the remainder of the day, we sat and watched in horror all the news coverage of the shooting that had just happened at our little school.
The recent shootings at Annunciation Catholic Church and the assassination of Charlie Kirk have triggered memories and feelings that I was not expecting. As I watched the news coverage of both tragedies, my heart just sank to the deepest depths. How can this still be happening? How can people take the innocent lives, not to mention the lives of children? I began to ponder these events with great attention, and waves of emotions spilled through me. I cried out to God, “Where are you? How can these horrifying events be taking place? What can we do to make sure this never happens again? What can I do to help?” Questions and more questions rapidly ran through my mind.
It was in time of prayer and reflection that the words of St. John Paul II came to my mind, “Do not be afraid.” These were his very first words to begin his pontificate. Do not be afraid. I let this sit with me for a while. Then the words from the book of Joshua rang out, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
The reality is, in this fallen world, evil is real and it exists. The evil one is working hard to bring down the Church. It is done by little and large acts of violence. It is done through hateful speech and actions. It is done through the devaluation of life at all stages.
The more we step away from Christ, the more this evil will try and enter our lives. We need to take all precautions possible to keep our schools, churches, campuses and public squares safe. It is our duty to ensure that we are diligent in our planning and it is good to speak up to our representatives in public office. We need to “move our feet.”
However, to say that we can guarantee this will never happen again is a promise we cannot make.
During my time of reflection, I felt heaviness. At times, I have felt helpless. The darkness and pain are real and sometimes it seems impossible to overcome. For me, going back to the words of JPII reminds me that Christ is calling us to live with courage. If we sit in his presence, he will expel the darkness and ease the pain. Christ is calling his people and his Church to draw closer to him. He longs for us and our relationship with him. Our communities and families, our schools and our institutions need the presence of Christ.
It is our charge to carry that presence wherever we are. We are to let Christ work in us and through us. We are to love one another, we are to care for each other, we are to listen (really listen) to each other and we are called to pray for all our brothers and sisters in Christ.
These recent events have stirred many feelings and emotions within me just as I am sure these events have stirred you different and similar ways. I encourage you to dig into the Word of God. Spend time in prayer with one another. Gather together at Mass to worship with one another. Do all these things, but I encourage you, do not be afraid, do not live in fear. Be strong and courageous. God is with us wherever we go.
Dan Pfannenstein is a member of St. Mary’s Cathedral and an occasional writer for The Central Minnesota Catholic.
Above photo: A man prays near crosses outside Annunciation Church in Minneapolis Aug. 28, 2025, following a shooting the previous day. A shooter opened fire with a rifle through the windows of the school’s church and struck children attending Mass Aug. 27 during the first week of school, killing two and wounding 21 people in an act of violence the police chief called “absolutely incomprehensible.” (OSV News photo/Tim Evans, Reuters)
Daniel, great job of writing and sharing the tragedy but also the hope we have as we remember those words from our Lord Jesus Christ “don’t be afraid” and as carrying out his commission in serving our Lord and Savior.
This is excellent. So courageous of someone who has lived through the horror of a school shooting dig deeper and share perspective.