'We Are So Very Grateful': Parents Voice Support For Teachers After Shooting
DENVER, Colo. (CBS4) -- Since Tuesday's shooting outside a Denver middle schools, parents have been dealing with a wide range of emotions. Many voiced their anger with DSST Public Schools for not notifying parents of Cole Middle Schools students about the shooting sooner.
Others shared a very different emotion and put it into words in a heartfelt letter to DSST teachers and staff.
"We love you. We are so very grateful for you," Courtney Peña read from the letter.
Courtney was among the hundreds of parents who rushed to Cole Middle School to find her child as soon as word got out about the shooting.
"He was sitting right next to the window in the classroom where the kid was shot right outside," she said of her son, a 7th grader.
Like other moms and dads, Courtney and her husband were initially upset the school didn't alert them to the lockdown faster.
"But as we stepped back and heard the stories from our kids and how loved they felt and how safe they felt throughout the whole thing, it just made all the other stuff strip away," Juan Peña told CBS4's Kelly Werthmann. "And we realized these teachers did a really, really good job."
Related: Police Arrest Juvenile In Shooting Outside Denver School That Injured Teen
When Juan and Courtney, along with four of their friends with kids at Cole Middle School, realized teachers were hearing more complaints than thanks, they came up with a plan.
"We can't let that be the only thing that these teachers, who were heroic, we can't let that be the only thing they hear," Josh Larsen said.
Which is why the group of parents got together to send teachers a different message, one filled with gratitude instead of anger.
"Don't listen to the extent that it leaves you wondering if anybody noticed all the things you got right," Katie Larsen read from the letter.
"We hope we would be as courageous and clear-minded as you were," Juan read.
"You have earned a sacred place in our lives and we are standing with and behind you as you lead a school forward," Courtney continued.
"I want [teachers] to feel appreciated," Katie told CBS4. "I just want them to hear, 'well done.'"
DSST shared a copy of the letter on their Facebook page, thanking the parents for their kind words.
"In a difficult week, the genuine voices of our parents offer great comfort and perspective," the post reads.
Kelly Werthmann joined the CBS4 team as the morning reporter in 2012. After serving as weekend morning anchor, Kelly is now Covering Colorado First for CBS4 News at 10. Connect with Kelly on Facebook or follow her on Twitter @KellyCBS4.
