SANTEE, S.C. – Thirteen cards of sympathy, each bearing approximately 150 signatures of students enrolled in Lake Marion High School’s Army JROTC program, are on their way to Fort Hood, Tex., the site of the mass killing of 13 individuals on Nov. 5.

Nearly 30 individuals, including the alleged gunman, were injured during the shooting rampage.

Cadet Captain Monica Evans, 17, of Santee, who serves as public affairs officer for the Lake Marion JROTC, is familiar with Fort Hood. She spent more than a month with her uncle and aunt in nearby Killeen, Tex. Her uncle, Master Sgt. Bernard Evans, formerly of Orangeburg County, is stationed at Fort Hood.

“He left the base right before the incident took place,” Evans said, “I’m just happy he wasn’t there during that time.”

She said she’s thankful she and her fellow cadets are able to send cards of sympathy to the families of the fallen troops.

Sgt. Maj. Howard Brown, director of the school’s JROTC program, said this is the third time LMHS cadets have sent cards of condolence to grieving families in the U.S.

Cadets in years past have also mailed cards to the families of victims of the Columbine High School shootings in Colorado and the Virginia Tech tragedy, Brown said.

He said the students discussed the Fort Hood incident, and many of them asked the same questions on the minds of millions of Americans: How could this happen on American soil? Why would an American soldier take the lives of his comrades?

As for Evans, she said her signature on each of the sympathy cards carries a prayer.

“I pray for peace of mind for the soldiers,” she said.

Evans, a senior, is planning to pursue post-secondary education to become a physical therapist. She is also preparing for a career in the military.

“My decision to join the military came when I was little,” she said, “I have a lot of military people in my family.”

With Brown’s help, Evans will make sure the Public Affairs Office at Fort Hood receives the cards, which will then be forwarded to the families of the fallen soldiers.

After students signed the cards, Brown wrote a note accompanied with his signature: “Our thoughts and prayers are with you during this time of grief. May God give you strength.”

T&D Correspondent Martha Rose Brown can be reached by e-mail at marfawose@aol.com.

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