Wednesday morning started like any other day for families at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis. Kids were excited about their first week back at school, parents were dropping them off with lunch boxes and backpacks, and everything seemed perfectly normal. But then something terrible happened that nobody could have seen coming.
The shooting at Minneapolis has left an entire community heartbroken and searching for answers. What was supposed to be a peaceful morning Mass turned into every parent’s worst nightmare.
When Everything Changed
At around 8:30 in the morning, students were sitting in the church pews for their weekly Mass. It’s something they’d done countless times before – just kids being kids, probably thinking about recess or what they’d have for lunch. Then the sound of gunshots shattered the peaceful morning.
The shooting at Minneapolis happened when 23-year-old Robin Westman fired multiple shots through the church windows from outside. The gunman was dressed in black and carried a rifle, shotgun, and pistol – all legally purchased weapons, according to police.
“These kids were literally praying,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said during an emotional press conference. “It was the first week of school. They were in a church.”
Two young children, ages 8 and 10, were killed while they sat in the pews. Seventeen other people were hurt in the attack – 14 of them kids ranging from 6 to 15 years old, and three adults in their 80s.
The Shooter’s Disturbing Plan
What makes this shooting at Minneapolis even more chilling is how planned it was. Robin Westman had posted disturbing videos on YouTube that were timed to go live during the attack. The videos showed weapons, ammunition, and what appeared to be a handwritten manifesto.
In the videos, which have since been taken down, Westman could be heard saying things like “I can’t wait to kill and kill and kill and kill.” The content included racist slurs, anti-religious messages, and references to other mass shooters.
Police Chief Brian O’Hara called it “a deliberate act of violence against innocent children and other people worshipping.” The FBI is now investigating this shooting at Minneapolis as a potential act of terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics.
A Connection to the School
Here’s something that makes this story even more heartbreaking – Westman wasn’t a complete stranger to the school. The shooter’s mother had worked at Annunciation Catholic Church for about five years before retiring in 2021. She served as both a parish secretary and administrative assistant.
Westman had also attended the school and graduated in 2017. Some reports suggest the shooter had even visited the school recently while teachers were preparing for the new school year. It’s like the shooting at Minneapolis was committed by someone who should have been protecting these kids, not hurting them.
Heroes in the Chaos
Even in the middle of this terrible shooting at Minneapolis, there were heroes. Principal Matthew DeBoer described how people inside the church acted quickly to protect the children.
“Children were ducked down. Adults were protecting children. Older children were protecting younger children,” he said at a press conference.
One student, who wasn’t named for privacy reasons, described the terrifying moments. He talked about being scared he wouldn’t see his mother again and not knowing what was happening. His mother was outside the church when the shooting started, and she was the first person he saw when he finally got out safely.
The Community Responds
The shooting at Minneapolis has brought the entire community together in grief and support. Parents rushed to the school, not knowing if their children were safe. Some were reunited with hugs and tears, while others faced the unthinkable news that their little ones wouldn’t be coming home.
Governor Tim Walz said the young students who were looking forward to starting the new school year were met with “evil and horror and death.” He added that there shouldn’t be words for these types of incidents because they simply shouldn’t happen.
President Trump was briefed on the shooting at Minneapolis and ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff. He spoke with Governor Walz after the tragedy and said the White House would continue monitoring the situation.
What We Know About the Shooter
Robin Westman was 23 years old and lived about a 20-minute walk from the school. Neighbors described the family as friendly and helpful people who kept mostly to themselves. One neighbor even said Westman seemed like a “nonviolent kid” growing up.
But the reality was much darker. Court documents show that Westman legally changed her name from Robert to Robin in 2020, identifying as female. However, the shooting at Minneapolis revealed someone who had been planning violence for a long time.
In the manifesto videos, Westman wrote about being “corrupted by this world” and learning “to hate what life is.” The writings referenced other mass shooters and showed an obsession with school violence dating back to seventh grade.
The Weapons and Planning
The shooting at Minneapolis involved three legally purchased firearms that Westman had bought recently. Police found additional weapons at related residences, showing this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision.
The most disturbing part? Westman had written the names of notorious mass shooters on the weapons, including the gunmen from Sandy Hook, the Tree of Life Synagogue, and the Christchurch mosque attacks. There were also racist phrases and messages like “Kill Donald Trump” written on some of the guns.
Medical Response and Recovery
After the shooting at Minneapolis, multiple hospitals sprang into action to help the victims. Children’s Minnesota treated seven patients between ages 9 and 16, with four discharged by Wednesday afternoon. Hennepin Healthcare received 10 patients – eight children and two adults.
As of Wednesday night, several victims remained in critical condition, but doctors expect all the survivors to recover from their injuries. It’s a small miracle that more lives weren’t lost in this shooting at Minneapolis.
A Pattern We Can’t Ignore
This shooting at Minneapolis marks the fifth school shooting in the United States this year, according to tracking data. Previous incidents happened in California, Florida, Texas, and Tennessee. It’s a grim reminder that school safety remains a serious concern across the country.
Mayor Frey made it clear that thoughts and prayers aren’t enough anymore. “It’s on public servants and leaders to not just have words but also have actions that are attached to those words,” he told reporters.
Moving Forward
The shooting at Minneapolis has left a community forever changed. A vigil was planned for Wednesday evening at Lynnhurts Park, where people could come together to remember the victims and support each other through this difficult time.
For the families who lost children, no words can describe their pain. For those whose kids survived, there’s the challenge of helping them process what they experienced and feel safe again.
As investigators continue looking into the shooting at Minneapolis, one thing is clear – this tragedy will have lasting effects on everyone involved. The question now is what we can do to prevent something like this from happening again.
Schools should be places where kids learn and laugh, not where they have to worry about their safety. Churches should be sanctuaries of peace, not scenes of violence. The shooting at Minneapolis reminds us all that we need to do better at protecting our most vulnerable citizens – our children.
