Florida Senate - 2021 (Corrected Copy) SR 1266
By Senators Book and Polsky
32-01455B-21 20211266__
1 Senate Resolution
2 A resolution recognizing February 14, 2022, and each
3 February 14 thereafter, as “Marjory Stoneman Douglas
4 High School Memorial Day” in Florida, a day of
5 remembrance for all of those who lost their lives, or
6 whose lives were forever changed, as a result of the
7 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School
8 in Parkland.
9
10 WHEREAS, on February 14, 2018, students, faculty, and staff
11 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland arrived on
12 campus for a school day that began like any other, and
13 WHEREAS, at 2:19 p.m., Nikolas Cruz, a 19-year-old former
14 student of the school, was dropped off by an Uber driver on the
15 east side of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas campus, and
16 WHEREAS, the young man was carrying a rifle bag, and
17 WHEREAS, minutes later, the young man entered the east
18 hallway doors of Building 12 on the campus, where he removed his
19 semiautomatic rifle from the bag, loaded the weapon, and donned
20 a magazine-carrying vest, and
21 WHEREAS, at 2:21 p.m., the young man fired the first rounds
22 to the west of the first-floor hallway, striking four students,
23 only one of whom survived her injuries, and
24 WHEREAS, in the minutes that followed, the young man
25 repeatedly fired into classrooms and at those within his line of
26 sight in the hallway, and
27 WHEREAS, at 2:22 p.m., the first 911 call was received by a
28 law enforcement communications center in Coral Springs, and
29 WHEREAS, that call came from inside Building 12, and
30 WHEREAS, as fire alarms became active within Building 12
31 and at various locations on campus, students began screaming in
32 panic and sprinting from classrooms, and
33 WHEREAS, at 2:27 p.m., the young man fired his last
34 gunshot, entered the west stairwell on the third floor of
35 Building 12, placed his rifle vest and 180 rounds of live
36 ammunition on the ground, and ran down the stairs, joining in
37 with a large group of students who were fleeing the campus, and
38 WHEREAS, in those terrifying 6 minutes from the beginning
39 of the assault to his exit from the building, the young man took
40 the lives of 17 members of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High
41 School family and wounded 17 others, many of them gravely, and
42 WHEREAS, those who died were 14-year-old Alyssa Alhadeff,
43 an honor student and athlete; Scott Beigel, age 35, a teacher
44 and coach with a passion for volunteerism; 14-year-old Martin
45 Duque Anguiano, Jr., an honor student and JROTC cadet corporal;
46 17-year-old Nicholas Dworet, who was captain of the swim team
47 and selected by faculty as one of twenty first class graduating
48 seniors who excelled in academic achievement, character,
49 community service, and athletic achievement; Aaron Feis, age 37,
50 a loving husband and a devoted father, coach, and mentor who
51 always put his family first; 14-year-old Jaime Guttenberg, who
52 was a competitive dancer and a volunteer to children with
53 special needs; Christopher Hixon, age 49, who served in the
54 United States Navy for 27 years, both active duty and reserves,
55 and followed his passion for sports to become athletic director
56 for Broward County Public Schools; 15-year-old Luke Hoyer, known
57 as “Lukey Bear” to his family, who played for many years in the
58 Parkland Basketball League and aspired to join the Marjory
59 Stoneman Douglas football team in the fall; 14-year-old Cara
60 Loughran, who is remembered as a fiercely loyal, determined,
61 beautiful soul; 14-year-old Gina Montalto, a Girl Scout who was
62 an avid reader and a talented artist and who was a member of the
63 Marjory Stoneman Douglas color guard; 17-year-old Joaquin
64 Oliver, who is remembered as the most vibrant personality in any
65 room he entered and as a best friend; 14-year-old Alaina Petty,
66 a vibrant and determined first-year cadet in the JROTC program,
67 where she achieved the highest rank possible for a freshman; 18
68 year-old Meadow Pollack, who aspired to be an attorney and a mom
69 and who, while small in stature, projected strength and
70 determination; 17-year-old Helena Ramsay, who had friends from
71 all cultures, was passionate about environmental issues, and
72 hoped to join an expedition to find the exquisite pink dolphins
73 of the Amazon; 14-year-old Alex Schachter, who loved sports,
74 especially playing basketball and football, and who played the
75 trombone in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Eagle Regiment Marching
76 Band; 16-year-old Carmen Schentrup, a National Merit Scholar who
77 loved to explore the world, especially enjoying national parks;
78 and 15-year-old Peter Wang, who embodied the values espoused in
79 the JROTC program — honor, duty, respect, loyalty, selfless
80 service, and courage — and who was posthumously admitted to the
81 West Point class of 2025 and awarded the institution’s Medal of
82 Heroism for his actions to save fellow students on that day, and
83 WHEREAS, on February 14, 2018, amid the terror and carnage
84 of that day, there were extraordinary acts of courage by members
85 of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas family, several of whom gave
86 their lives in the protection of others, and
87 WHEREAS, the events of February 14, 2018, at Marjory
88 Stoneman Douglas High School forever changed the lives of the
89 students, faculty, and staff who survived the massacre and their
90 family members, the first responders who rushed to the scene,
91 the health care workers who tended to the wounded, and all who
92 witnessed the carnage, and
93 WHEREAS, out of the tragedy came hope in the scores of
94 students who survived the attack who joined together in an
95 attempt to ensure that the events of February 14, 2018, will not
96 be forgotten and to advocate for the enactment of laws,
97 policies, and practices that will make our schools safer, NOW,
98 THEREFORE,
99
100 Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:
101
102 That we remember the tragic events of February 14, 2018,
103 and all of the lives lost or forever changed in the mass
104 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
105 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that February 14, 2022, and each
106 February 14 thereafter, is recognized as “Marjory Stoneman
107 Douglas High School Memorial Day” in Florida.
108 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that flags at all state and local
109 government buildings in this state shall be flown at half-staff
110 on Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Memorial Day.
111 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Marjory Stoneman Douglas High
112 School Memorial Day shall be commemorated, at the Capitol
113 building in Tallahassee and at gatherings throughout the state,
114 with the reading of the names of those who lost their lives in
115 the mass shooting beginning with a moment of silence at 2:21
116 p.m., the time at which the first shot was fired.
117 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution, with
118 the Seal of the Senate affixed, be available for presentation to
119 the surviving family members of those who lost their lives in
120 the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School as a
121 tangible token of the sentiments of the Florida Senate.