Parkland massacre survivors privately mourning anniversary

The communities and families terrorized by the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre will spend today’s anniversary visiting graves, packing meals for the needy and contributing to other service projects as they quietly remember the 14 students and three staff members who lost their lives.

Victims’ families say they will mourn out of the public eye. The Parkland school will be on a half-day schedule: Stoneman Douglas students will serve breakfast to first responders and will be dismissed nearly three hours before the time the shooting began, about 2:20 p.m. Many say they will avoid school altogether. Students at other Broward County schools will also work on service projects and observe a moment of silence.

A ceremony honoring the victims will be held in a park near the school where students also will prepare meals for disadvantaged children. A nondenominational, temporary temple will open in neighboring Coral Springs, where half the school’s students live. Visitors will be allowed to mourn, contemplate, leave mementos and write message on its walls. The temple will remain open until May, when it will be burned in a purification ceremony.

— AP