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Virginia Tech Shooting Survivor In Seattle Works To Help Others

virginia_tech_shooting.jpg
Alan Kim
/
The Roanoke Times
The aftermath of the Virginia Tech shootings, April 16, 2007. Kristina Anderson, on the right, is among the surivivors being carried out of one of the classrooms where the gunman opened fire.

Tuesday, Oct. 24, is the third anniversary of the shooting at Marysville-Pilchuck High School. A student gunman killed four of his friends and seriously wounded a fifth before taking his own life in 2014. 

This year’s anniversary comes a little over three weeks after the mass shooting in Las Vegas.

For Kristina Anderson of Seattle, remembering tragedies like these is painful. She was seriously wounded in the shooting at Virginia Tech 10 years ago. A gunman killed 32 people and wounded 17 others before turning the gun on himself.

Anderson was trapped in a classroom when the gunman walked in.

"I describe it as an evil heat wave that was coming closer and closer," she said.

Anderson now heads an organization called The Koshka Foundation, which focuses on improving school safety. She talked with 88.5’s Kirsten Kendrick.

Kirsten Kendrick has been hosting Morning Edition on KNKX/KPLU since 2006. She has worked in news radio for more than 30 years. Kirsten is also a sports lover. She handles most sports coverage at the station, including helping produce a two-part series on the 50th anniversary of Title IX and the ongoing series "Going Deep."
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