NIU Marks 10th Anniversary of Deadly 2008 Shooting

DEKALB, IL — Just weeks after the 10th anniversary of the Lane Bryant murders, Illinois is marking another somber milestone. Wednesday marks 10 years since a gunman opened fire on the Northern Illinois University campus, killing five students and wounding 17 more students and staff before turning the gun on himself.

Memorials began last week with a Friday night candlelight vigil in remembrance of the five victims: Gayle Dubowski, Catalina Garcia, Julianna Gehant, Ryanne Mace and Daniel Parmenter.

Wednesday morning, students were invited to an exhibit entitled "Forward, Together: Remembering," a tribute the resilience of the NIU community including items sent and donated to the campus from supporters around the world in the days after the tragedy. Remembrances and images of items sent to the campus can also be viewed online.

A memorial wreath ceremony is planned for 3 p.m. Wednesday outside Cole Hall, where shooter Steven P. Kazmierczak, 27, opened fire inside a crowded lecture hall one decade ago today. Wreaths will be placed on stones at the campus' Peaceful Reflection Garden and the NIU community will observe a moment of reflection with the tolling of bells at the time the shooting began, 3:06 p.m.

The NIU killings marked the fourth shooting that week in 2008 and happened just 10 months after the Virginia Tech shooting, which left 33 people dead and remained the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history for nearly a decade. In the years that followed, school shootings — and mass shootings in general — became an all-to-common tragedy.

Remembering those lost:

• Catalina Garcia, 20, a sophomore elementary education major from Cicero: “My sister was our princess, our princess in pink,” said Jaime Garcia, Catalina’s older brother. “She loved pink. She loved everything in life. Let’s remember her this way today, tomorrow and forever.”
• Daniel Parmenter, 20, a finance major from Westchester: "Dan was our gentle giant,” said Maria Krull, business adviser to the Northern Star, the student campus newspaper where the 20-year-old Parmenter worked as an advertising representative. “Very nice, always somebody you could count on, smiley face, never lost his temper – just what you really want to have for a co-worker ..."
• Gayle Dubowski, 20, a sophomore anthropology major from Carol Stream: “She had very deep beliefs and was very passionate about her faith," said her chaplain, Chris Zillman of the DeKalb Church of Christ.
• Julianna Gehant, 32, a junior elementary education major from Mendota: Juliana was “smart, kind and conscientious,” according to academic adviser Betsy Smith.
• Ryanne Mace, 19, a sophomore psychology major from Carpentersville: “In high school, some of her friends were kind of fringe kids who were maybe picked on by others or a little disenfranchised,” her father Eric recalled. “She was level-headed and smart, and as a result, they went to her for advice. At some point she decided that’s what she wanted to do with her life.”

Students and supporters are also invited to download a remembrance image to be used for social media profile photos on Wednesday.

More NIU remembrances and events are listed here.

Photo: Northern Illinois University student Colleen Johnson has a moment of silence in front of a memorial to slain students constructed near Cole Hall on the campus of Northern Illinois University February 15, 2008 in DeKalb, Illinois. Six people were killed including the gunman and 16 others were wounded after University of Illinois graduate student Stephen Kazmierczak opened fire with a shotgun and three handguns inside a lecture hall. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)