Last year (2025) was a difficult one for the Minneapolis community, as an armed individual armed with a rifle fired dozens of rounds into a scheduled mass the Church of the Annunciation on August 27, early in the school year. Gunfire killed two children, and injured two dozen more, plus some number of adults. I happen to live in the Twin Cities, and its really not a big place; one is bound to know somebody whose family had members on site.

Law enforcement identified the shooter as 23 year-old Robin M. Westman, who had graduated from the school in 2017 and whose mother had worked there. Per CNN, Westman had sufferred from depression, as well as suicidal and homicidal thoughts for years; they were carrying quite a bit of hate and did not think there was a place they could turn for help.

Since we’re a little past the year anniversary, there have been a number of recent stories that discuss how the community as been trying to move forward. These include

• A year after school shooting, Annunciation family moves forward in hope, OSV News
• Nine months after the Annunciation School shooting, families and survivors keep the memories of Harper and Fletcher alive – CNN
• After Their Kids Survived the Annunciation Shooting, Parents Search for Healing – Christianity Today