Frontier sends comfort to Virginia Tech

Moses Lake eighth graders show sympathy

MOSES LAKE — Frontier Middle School eighth grade student Luisa Manzo was flipping through channels April 16.

She stopped when she saw news about a gunman killing several students and faculty at Virginia Tech. It touched her deeply, particularly because she lost her great grandmother recently.

"I've lost someone before, and I know how it feels," Manzo said. "I know it hurts, and to lose 32 people at once, it must have hurt 32 times worse."

Manzo hoped she and other students at Frontier Middle School could do something to show Virginia Tech students and staff they care. She came up with the idea of creating a poster and sending it to them.

"I just wanted them to know, from all around the country, we're supporting them," she said.

Students signed the poster during lunch, said Frontier Middle School counselor Carrie Maine. The poster is being sent to the university, along with a letter.

"I think it's great," Maine said. "I was really impressed with Luisa because she came to me with the idea to send them something."

One idea was to send a quilt but they wanted to get something to Virginia Tech fast, Maine said. She and Manzo collected signatures for the poster from students.

"They were really good at only saying positive things," Maine said.

In a way, the students at Frontier Middle School know what Virginia Tech is going through, Manzo said. Frontier dealt with its own tragedy in 1996 when a 14-year-old student came to school armed and killed three people.

"There's not really much we can say, just to let them know that we're there," Manzo said.

The letter to Virginia Tech, written by Builders Club Advisor Hope Candenoza, Counseling Secretary Sherri Osborne and Maine, states: "Our hearts are with you in this time of sorrow. Over ten years ago our community experienced a similar devastation … Our community is still healing but every day we grow closer and closer together."