The Columbine Massacre
  The Dead Cont. II
 

Born January 6, 1983
16 years old

Kelly Fleming and her family moved to Littleton from Phoenix, Arizona 18 months before the shooting. Her father Don said they scoured the area looking for a good neighborhood where their daughters would be safe. Kelly was a shy and creative girl who loved Halloween and was an aspiring songwriter and author who wrote many poems and short stories based on her life experiences. She had been writing an auto-biography on her home computer: She started when her mom's water broke and had gotten as far as her fifth year. She often went to Columbine's library to write; her stories often had happy endings.

Kelly was learning to drive and wanted to get a job at a day care center, and save enough money to buy a Mustang or a Corvette. She longed to be able to drive so she could return to Phoenix for a visit or go on road trips. She loved to read, especially books about vampires. One day she hoped to be a published author and often entered writing contests.

Her mother, Dee, remembered Kelly coming home from school two months before the shooting, saying: "I'm not shy any more."

When the shooters entered the library, Kelly was hiding beside a table with other girls who she had been sitting with: Lisa Kreutz, Jeanna Park, Diwata Perez, Valeen Schnurr, and Lauren Townsend. At one point Dylan Klebold fired under the table, injuring Val and Lisa. He fired his gun again, killing Lauren. Both gunmen reloaded their weapons and taunted Val, asking her if she believed in God. The shooters then moved away from Kelly's table, moving to another table where they shot Nicole Nowlen and killed John Tomlin before coming back to the girls's table. Coming up from behind, he shot Kelly in the back with his sawed-off shotgun.

Her body was found on the floor near that of Lauren Townsend. Kelly's father said: "Here's one of the real leaders of the school, and our Kelly was next to someone like that. I'm sure Lauren took care of Kelly. She wasn't alone." He also said he prayed for the parents of the shooters. "They'll have a tougher time getting over this than we will."

Kelly's funeral was held at the same time as Daniel Mauser's at the St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Church. She was buried with two teddy bears in her arms. Her grave is located at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Wheat Ridge, Colorado.






Born June 25, 1983
15 years old

Daniel Mauser was a Sophomore who excelled in math and science, and got straight 'A's on his last report card. His dad, Tom Mauser, remembered his son as a smart young man who wasn't afraid of challenges and who wasn't ashamed to hug his parents. He attended Ken Caryl Middle School, the same school the shooters went to, but there's no record of them knowing each other.

Daniel was shy but he didn't let that stop him from joining the debate team and though he wasn't a natural athlete, he still joined the cross-country team. He liked to ski, camp and recently returned from a two-week trip to Paris with the French club. He had received straight 'A's in his classes for the last two grading periods and won the "Stretch for Excellence" award for being named the top biology student of the Sophomore class at Columbine High School. Sadly, he died before he could learn that he'd been selected for that honor. Daniel was also posthumously accepted for membership into the National Honor Society in September of 1999. He had applied for membership weeks before the shootings.

Daniel is described by his family as a shy, gentle soul; lovable and loving. He was close friends with his sister Christine. Daniel liked pepperoni pizza, playing video and computer games, and watching shows like the Simpsons and the X-Files. Daniel was fond of trivia and knowledge games, as well as swimming and hiking. His father had hoped that in the summer of 1999 to take Daniel on his first 14,000 mountain hike.

Daniel volunteered at the Swedish Hospital and he was preparing for Confirmation in the Catholic Church. He would have been Confirmed at St. Frances Cabrini Church two weeks after the date of his death. His class put a plaque in the teen program room in Daniel's honor. Daniel was hoping to get his driver's license in 2000. He was concerned with gun safety in America -- just two weeks before he was killed Daniel had asked his father if he knew that there were loopholes in the Brady Bill. Tom Mauser was motivated by what he interpreted as a sign for action: Daniel was shot with a gun that was purchased through one of the very loopholes he had pointed out. Tom is now an active protester of the NRA and continues to campaign for stricter gun laws in the wake of his son's tragic death.

Daniel was in the library when he was shot in the face by Eric Harris while hiding under one of the tables. Daniel died under the table where he had hidden. His funeral was held jointly with Kelly Fleming's at St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Church. He was buried in Mount Olivet Cemeteryin Wheat Ridge, Colorado.

Not long after the shootings, Daniel's family along with several other families of the shooting victims learned that the school district was planning to reopen the library where Daniel and the others had died. The plan was to make cosmetic changes such as removing the carpet, repainting, replacing bullet-riddled shelves. Upset by the notion, the Mausers along with several other parents and volunteers founded HOPE (Healing of People Everywhere) and together they convinced the district to tear out the old library and replace it.






Born March 3, 1982
17 years old

Corey DePooter was a former wrestler who loved to hike, golf, hunt, and fish. He loved wrestling, golf and in-line skating, but fishing was his passion. He had recently taken a maintenance job at a golf club to save up to buy a fishing boat with a friend. Someone Corey used to fish with said: "It was the times we didn't do well that his personality really shined." Another friend said of him: "When you're going fishing or camping, I know he's going to be there, watching and making sure you're doing everything right.

He's described as an all-American kid who put schoolwork above everything else: He had his wisdom teeth removed that year and was upset that the procedure had forced him to miss school. He was hiding under a table near the windows with his best friend Stephen "Austin" Eubanks and surviving victim Jennifer Doyle when the shooters entered the library. While his friend Austin watched, Dylan Klebold aimed his semi-automatic at Corey and pulled the trigger, killing him almost instantly.

Austin Eubanks later said about Corey: "People said he was the kind of guy people like to be around. I know I sure did. Corey was always able to pick our spirits up in a gloomy situation."

Corey died in the library from multiple gunshot wounds to the neck, chest and left arm. His funeral was held at Trinity Christian Center. Soon after his death his grandmother, Fern Hamilton, contacted the Marine Corps about holding some sort of ceremony for Corey because he'd always wanted to become a Marine. On May 3, 2000, Corey was granted that dream during a ceremony at his gravesite in Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens in Littleton, Colorado, where he was made an honorary Marine.


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