The tragic school shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Wisconsin on Monday killed a substitute teacher, who was covering for a regular educator on vacation. The teacher, who usually ran the study hall, was on planned leave, a parent told Wisconsin Right Now.
Lyndsay O'Connor, whose children attend the school, explained the regular teacher “made the room into a comforting place and handpicked the students who would be there that day. They were kids she thought needed extra help.”
“The teacher died protecting her class. Many more lives could have been taken. She (Rupnow) sent off multiple rounds,” Ms O'Connor said. “It sounds like the brave substitute teacher who fought Natalie Rupnow stood in the gap for the rest of the kids.”
Ms O'Connor believes the shooter, Rupnow, passed her daughter Mackynzie's classroom on her way to the study hall, where the shooting occurred. “Mackynzie said she walked by our door; she went to that room,” Ms O'Connor said. “We don't know if her target was the original teacher or just the kids in the class. She would have had to walk by the door and the door was open.”
Natalie Rupnow, 15, killed the substitute teacher and another teenager, while five others, including an instructor, sustained injuries. Two of the injured students are critical, police reported.
The shooter was described by Ms O'Connor as an “odd version of preppie in a way,” often dressing in shirts and ties. Rupnow was isolated, with few friends, and appeared to have a troubled home life. “She died a broken girl. She died unheard, and she found solace in a bunch of people who didn't promote goodness,” Ms O'Connor said.
Natalie Rupnow opened fire inside the K-12 school around 11 am before shooting herself. Authorities clarified the first 911 call was made by a second-grade teacher, not a student, as initially reported.
