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Prayer Vigil Begins Long Healing Process After Mount Tabor H.S. Shooting

The community mourns during a prayer vigil at Mount Tabor United Methodist Church on Thursday, September 2, 2021. KERI BROWN/WFDD

Hundreds of people gathered Thursday night in front of Mount Tabor United Methodist Church in Winston-Salem to pray for peace and healing after a fatal shooting at a local high school.

The crowd of navy and gold, the colors of Mount Tabor High School, sang "Amazing Grace." There were lots of hugs, tears, and reflection. 

“I'm glad that a lot of people are here supporting this. Just two weeks after COVID, you know everyone is going back to school and something tragic like this happens that's not supposed to happen," says Kai Phillips, who graduated in 2020. "It's pretty breathtakingly heavy, so it's hard to take this in.”

A common phrase during the vigil was "Spartan Strong" as students, parents, and families continue to cope with the loss of a student and the trauma left behind.

Police say William Chavis Raynard Miller Jr. died after another student shot him on campus Wednesday. The suspect's identity hasn't been released. The incident sparked lockdowns at several schools and chaos and confusion for parents trying to reach their children.

Senior Chris Glenn plays on Mount Tabor's football team. He says many of his friends knew both the victim and the alleged shooter. He's still trying to process what happened.

"It's just like crazy how your emotions impact your decision on what to do and stuff and it's just crazy to see someone turn like that and that doesn't happen at Mount Tabor," says Glenn. "It's a good community and to see something like that it's mind-blowing, shocking.”

Glenn says he'll never forget what happened that day and wonders what school will be like when it reopens next week. For now, he's finding comfort in his teammates, his faith, and the outpouring of support from the community.

Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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