EVERGREEN, Colo. — 366 days after the tragic shooting at Evergreen High School, the community has not forgotten the horror, but they also have not forgotten how the community rallied around each other.
On Friday, before their football game vs. Bennett, the school the school and community honored the first responders and community members who supported the school after the shooting.
"I think the last year just really showed that they're capable of of that, and they continue to show up for us, and just support the staff, the students, our staff supporting students, the community supporting our staff and students," said Evergreen HS Assistant Principal and Athletic Director Maddy Hornecker.
Students say it's been really cool to see how the community supported them.
"I feel like we're a center stone in this community, especially the school," Evergreen High Football Player and Senior Darton Tucker told Denver7's Tyler Melito. "The community looks up to us, especially the team, because they know what we went through at the school."
"We've really overcome a lot," added Tucker's teammate and fellow Senior Jackson Post. "We're in a great place now. We have a great football team this year."
The support hasn't just been for the football team. Senior Maddin Cornwell told Melito it's been in every aspect of the school, even on Thursday, the one year anniversary of the shooting.
"Everybody's kind of come together to show each other spirit, and again the support," Cornwell shared. "It just it's continued, and yeah, it's it was definitely it was a hard day, but at the same time, being together definitely helped."
Head Football Coach Matt Van Prag shared with Melito he and his coaching staff have always tried to mold players into respectable young men, but the last year there's been a greater emphasis, ensuring players upheld the responsibility of the name on the front of their jersey.
"One of one of our only rules is that is that the evergreen community is represented by the name on the front of the jersey, and we represent that whether we're here or we're off campus," Van Prag said.
The phrase "Evergreen Strong " has become very common around the town. It's one Hornecker says now carries new meaning after the last year.
"It's not a remembrance of something bad, it's how how great we are, and what our what our community is capable of you know like it's it's a high school Evergreen Strong it is a high school but it's also a community and it's really cool to be part of a school in a community like this where everybody that lives in Evergreen goes Evergreen High School," Hornecker detailed. "We're wearing it with pride, and I'm always happy to like put on my Evergreen Strong T-shirt."
With Cornwell adding having gone through last year's tragedy, has made her a stronger person.
"I'm way stronger than I ever thought I was," Cornwell described. "Going through that day, it just strengthened me as a person, and I see so much growth in myself and I know that I'm able to support other people now and take that empathy that I've kind of acquired that you can't learn from a textbook."
