A new puppy, a volleyball fundraiser: 5 ways Annunciation victims are finding healing
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It’s been nearly three months since the mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church and School in Minneapolis.
A shooter injured 28 people and killed two children: 10-year-old Harper Moyski and 8-year-old Fletcher Markel.
While Annunciation community members are still grappling with the tragedy, they’re taking steps at moving forward with help from others.
MPR News rounded up some recent efforts to support them.
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November becomes Harper Lillian Moyski Month in Minneapolis
Thursday morning, the Minneapolis City Council passed an honorary resolution in memory of Harper, whose birthday was Nov. 3.
In her honor, the resolution invites “all residents to carry forward her spirit of kindness, connection, and joy.”
Council member Emily Koski, who represents the ward which includes Annunciation Catholic School and Church, presented a framed document to Harper’s parents, Jackie Flavin and Mike Moyski.
“This means the world to us,” said Moyski, receiving the resolution. “The biggest thing that we want out of this, and why we're so honored by having this platform right now, is we just want to make sure that all this had meaning behind it.”
For Harper’s birthday, relatives take on challenge to ‘be the light’
Harper’s family honored her birthday with acts of kindness this month.
Last weekend, many extended family traveled to the Twin Cities for the first annual fundraiser in Harper’s name to support a permanent memorial at Annunciation Catholic School. Funds will also go towards local volleyball programs, to celebrate Harper’s favorite sport.
Because Harper loved animals, one relative delivered cookies to a local emergency veterinarian.
Amy Flavin-Williams, a cousin to Harper’s mom, said the family is finding ways to lean into Harper’s legacy and her cousin’s message at Harper’s celebration of life “to be the light.”
“We've really been trying to focus on and to think less about how Harper died, and more about how Harper lived,” she said.
Flavin-Williams and her children rallied donations to create “blessing boxes” — with everything needed to make a birthday cake — for food pantries, shelters and school drives. She said her sons are still processing their feelings about Harper’s death but they got a kick out of compiling exactly 67 boxes (the number is a popular meme with Generation Alpha).
“When someone dies, you don't get to continue to make memories with that person, but you can continue to make memories for that person and things that are inspired by that person,” said Flavin-Williams.
Minneapolis police unit gifts a therapy puppy to Merkel family
Fletcher’s siblings are all smiles in a video posted to Facebook. They had ended school last week and gone outside, only to learn they now owned a puppy.
“I love him so much. He’s a little sausage,” Milo Merkel says in the video while holding the golden retriever.
The Minneapolis police homicide unit, alongside the Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis and a few private individuals, fundraised to donate a trained therapy puppy.
Andrew Schroeder is a Minneapolis police sergeant assigned to the homicide unit and the lead detective on the Annunciation church case. As part of his role, he’s been in regular contact with Annunciation victim families. He said the Merkels mentioned they were looking for a therapy dog just hours after he met someone with a therapy dog company.
Schroeder said officers didn’t want to publicly take credit, but Mollie Merkel invited them to be present when the children received the puppy after school. He said his team wanted to do a nice gesture because of how the loss has affected the Merkels, as well as them.
“Police, we see tragedy day after day after day, and to do something nice, to bring joy to people — it was really emotional,” said Schroeder.
He described the mass shooting as “the saddest case I've ever been part of in my career” but said he’s also in awe.
“To be a part and to see that community and how it's rallied, it's remarkable,” said Schroeder.
Annunciation first graders find comfort in class bunny
Lucy George Rabbit is the new bunny on staff at Annunciation.
Sara Slack is a first-grade teacher at Annunciation, where her two children also attend. She said she came across therapy bunnies while finding support after the shooting at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, which served as community hub following the shooting. She decided to get one for her class after noticing many of her students were joyful and calm among the bunnies.
Slack said her students were adamant about Lucy getting a first, middle and last name. They brainstormed and voted on it together.
Lucy roams the class during the day and goes home with Slack at night. At school, she lives in what Slack calls “a bunny dreamhouse” built by a student’s dad. A spokesperson from the Rabbit Rescue of Minnesota said they don’t generally condone class pets but they visited Annunciation and “were blown away” by the care Lucy gets.
“She’s spoiled. We’ll put it that way,” said Lisa Hopper, rescue director and surrender coordinator.
Slack said Lucy comforts not only first graders, but students in other grades — and parishioners after mass.
“She has really changed our community,” said Slack, describing how students hold Lucy and seem to reset afterwards.
“It's something that they look forward to each day that brings them joy and takes a little bit of the edge off the fear,” said Slack. “I get emotional. She just brings this light and energy. It's just beautiful.”
All her students even took their school pictures with Lucy, unbeknownst to their parents.
"And the influx of texts, emails, Seesaw messages of just pure joy when those photos went home to the parents of just 'Thank you. Thank you. I never thought, I thought that I would see them smile that way again.' Just their little faces all lit up holding her in their picture. So proud of just their little friend."
Minneapolis opens ‘resilience center’ for Annunciation community
The City of Minneapolis this month opened a temporary space at Washburn Library to help the Annunciation community heal and find support.
Called a “resilience center,” the space has mental health care, crime victims’ services, therapy animals and other resources.
It’s open once a week and available free of charge.
