March 6, 2001

Good Lord, not again.

Beth Nimmo wept last night in Colorado when she saw footage of dead and wounded children at Santana High School.

Nimmo cried for the two families who would soon learn they had lost what was most precious to them.

And she cried, again, for her own family. The images from Santee brought back memories of her own horror -- the day she lost her 17-year-old daughter, Rachel Scott, in the massacre at Columbine High School.

"This wave of sickness came over me," Nimmo said. "We have children killing children. How are we going to stop this?"

News of the Santana High School students broke hearts at Columbine, where the nation's deadliest school shooting took place on April 20, 1999. That awful morning, two high school seniors opened fire in the school library, killing 12 students and a teacher and wounding more than 20 before taking their own lives.

The community has prayed that no other families would have to live through a similar pain. They hoped the country would learn from their anguish and take seriously threats of violence.

"There is no such thing as joking about taking someone's life," said Larry Nimmo, Rachel's stepfather, referring to reports that the young suspect in the Santee shooting had said he planned to bring a gun to school.

Columbine High School officials have called Santana High School officials to offer their support and advice on coping with the tragedy.

"Our hearts go out to the Santee community," said Rick Kaufman, who was Columbine High School's crisis response team leader. "We want them to know there are a whole lot of us thinking about them."

As the families of Columbine know all too well, healing is a long and agonizing journey. And some wounds, physical and emotional, never fully heal.

"A normal day will be totally redefined," said Beth Nimmo, whose son, Craig Scott, now 18, witnessed the violence at Columbine. "What was normal yesterday will not be normal from here on out."

Richard Castaldo was left paralyzed by the bullets that riddled his body as he ate lunch on the Columbine High School lawn. The news of the Santee shooting made him sad and angry.

"It makes me wonder what the hell is wrong with people," Castaldo said. "There seems to be a lot of messed up people today for some reason."

And yet, those who were hurt at Columbine know that in time, the pain will become easier to bear.

Castaldo, now 19, is going to community college, where he takes business classes. He plays saxophone and keyboard in a band called Zebra Junction and he has a job doing data entry for a communications company.

"It's hard work to recover," Castaldo said. "But you have to try to look forward, instead of focusing on the horrible thing that just happened. Things get better in time."

Doreen Tomplin found the strength to survive losing her 16-year-old son, John, through faith in God. "Losing a child is like a chunk of your heart being gone forever," she said. "If it wasn't for my faith in Jesus Christ, I could not have made it."

The Nimmos say they are slowly learning to find joy in life again.

"We know now how fragile life is," Beth Nimmo said. "For us, family and God matter the most."