Young, on the other hand, suddenly retreated into the bathroom and shot himself dead. I actually created a website knowing that people would wonder what was real and what wasn't. I received a telephone call from my dispatcher informing me that an incident had taken place up in Cokeville and they were requesting me to drive to Cokeville for assistance. Rich Haskell: I am. Wheeling in a high-powered shrapnel bomb and a full arsenal of guns, they terrorized a school of 154 kids and their teachers, demanding a $300 million ransom. But he knew the culture, he knew the type of people, and I'm not sayin' that Mormon people are better than anybody else, but their way of life is family is first. Upon entering the classroom, children saw an arsenal of weapons, a grocery cart and an unfamiliar manDavid Young. Wyoming has a lot of money as far as the state is concerned. Rich Haskell: Well, you know, that's a really good question. Christensen Writers T.C. Which is hard to believe, but a positive experience in that they learned something. David emerged from the bathroom to find his wife in excruciating pain. Soon enough, though, he was dismissed from the position after a 6-month probationary period. Box 37, Cokeville, Wyoming 83114. Mark Junge: And you know, in Sue and I's conversation with these dozen people we've talked to now, seems like they also feel the same way you do. (before I see Hollywood's version). Rich Haskell: Yes, there was a briefcase in the hallway, and we were toldbefore I had gotten there they had gotten papers from his daughter. This wasn't a simple bomb. In the days and weeks immediately after this event, most accounts focused on the horrors of the day. When they refused to participate, David held them at gunpoint while his daughter and wife handcuffed them inside their van. Rich Haskell: I don't think that they were planningor David was planning on the ceiling tiles in the school. Don't push any alarms, answer any phones, or call for help. Available on Prime Video, Tubi TV. Their stories are also represented in the film - which has led to further healing. NOTE: Witness to Miracles was published in 2006 by Pronghorn Press, www.pronghornpress.org . It depends on your focus. "My brother came over and told my sister and me to go sit by the window. What did you find out about them? I had just cracked a little joke with a toy tank of legos as I drove it "across the death line" or the masking tape square on the floor. Were you portrayed in the movie at all? When Columbine took place, it was such a big deal, and I mentioned to a couple people, "You know, Columbine wasn't the first school to have anything happen." Peterson, Carol. David set himself near the center of the room with the grocery cart bomb nearby, as Doris went from room to room rounding up people. Cokeville Miracle Motion Picture Review On May 16th 1986 a mentally crazed man, with enough explosives to completely destroy the building and kill all of the people inside, occupied an elementary school in Cokeville, Wyoming. The wire was cut. [easy-social-share buttons=facebook,twitter,google,pinterest,print,mail counters=0 style=icon message=yes]. Guys like you have to go and search every corner. The only thing I bristle at is that TC has me suggesting that we say a prayer. Being kids, they were curious. Because in the bus, everything was solid in the school bus. They had written the manuscript, ready for publication, when the Walkers contacted them as family friends and said you may want to come ask our daughters some questions. They were sitting out across the fence with scopes on their rifles just ready to shoot until the sheriff went out and said, "No. He targeted the tight-knit community, noting in his journals: Threaten one, and all are at your mercy. However, what he took as a weakness would be Cokevilles true strength. I know that for a fact! It became a story of a miracle rather than a tragedy. No, we can't do this. Is that morbid thinking on my part? In that moment, the Mormon community of Cokevilles trust was broken, but something far more extraordinary was about to happen. Just like with a pair of pliers, pair of snips. Midnight Hour: 7 Paranormal Games to Play in the Dark Tonight, 30 Scary Two Sentence Horror Stories To Read In The Dark, True Crime: The 10 Most Infamous American Murder Mysteries, Urban Legend: 25 People Share the Scariest Stories from their Hometowns, The Haunting Stories Behind Six Strange and Unusual Graves, Campfire Stories: 13 Terrifying Accounts of Paranormal Encounters in the Wilderness. Then, several years later, Jennie Sorensen identified what she thought was a teacher who led her out of the building after the blast. They attempted to crowd 154 people into one of the two first grade classrooms, a room with a total capacity of 30 students and a teacher. It'sI'm still doing that kind of thing because whenever they hold General Conference in Salt Lake City I go to Salt Lake City to be part of the bomb team for the church while they have General Conference. The town has worked to be as respectful as possible to the multitude of experiences that day. Do you ever think about them? T.C. Virginia Tech, it wasn't that way. It has shaped me to know that God is real. Rich Haskell: No. I can understand that. These are the true stories behind the hit film The Cokeville Miracle. Cook, the school's secretary and the first person taken hostage, could tell Young's threats were serious. She tied the string around her wrist. Why? I was later told that everybody had been taken to different hospitals, ambulance services from all over, from Utah, from Idaho, from Wyoming was transporting people all over the place and there was only two fatalities. They have a lot of first-person histories of the actual event, teachers, investigators and students. Investigators found that the bomb had been - perhaps miraculously - broken. Sheriff Ron. Teachers then got permission to bring in books, art supplies, games, and a television to keep the children calm. One of the unique things that I noticed when I went into that room and I don't know if any of the other people have told you about it or whatever else, but when I walked into that room you could see the outline on the whiteboard of an angel. Even though the majority of the townspeople are LDS, there are lots of people of a variety of faiths in the room that day. I actually hadn't thought of doing that, yet. They forget about what happened in Cokeville with a lot more people and the potential of what was there. Too many of 'em to try to remember their birthdays. On that Friday afternoon in their quiet, rural town, a deranged couple entered the communitys elementary school, took those inside hostage and detonated a bomb in a first grade classroom. Sep 29, 2015. Rich Haskell: Were above the level of the kids, yeah. It would have killed them. We're in a conference room here on the main floor. Doris accidently triggered the bomb by motioning to her hostages with her arms. Even lead investigator Ron Hartleys son pointed to an image of his grandmother as the angel whod protected him in the fire. So I went to Huntsville, Ala., to Redstone Arsenal. results in the deaths of perpetrators David and Doris Young; 154 hostages survive. I've got a couple of questions. The connection that my brain was making with my kids being in first grade and what happened to me in first grade was hard to control. I can't explain it. It was a great movie, very well directed and acted. "Seeing a woman's picture, I asked what grade she had taught and why she quit teaching after the bomb. They're the ones that died from the whole thing. David was a diabetic. Rich Haskell: You walk into the door, and I don't know if you got to go into the classroom, but you walk into that door and it opens up into the whole thing. In 1986, 154 children and teachers survived the bombing of . Speaking about PTSD, Jennie knows what her triggers are. The knowledge that God lives, and is still a God of miracles in this modern day has molded much of my thinking.". Have you had anything like this, anything close to this happen? Of course, most children were elated by the prospects of an assembly. We'd all do well learning to see God's hand in our lives. Mark Junge: With bombs? . Whenever you tell your story, you heal us one by one. Rich? Rich Haskell: Sure. It's a part of my life, one that I don't frequently revisit, but impossible not to reflect on from time to time. With Columbine, one clear pattern I noticed in the tragedy's aftermath is that half the community turned to God, choosing to learn from the incident while others buried their hurt, embittered by the pain and senselessness. Mark Junge: And the explosion went straight up? His fever broke within minutes of getting it off his chest. Well, he had put wooden shelves for layers. Cokeville Recollects Miracle of 1986: Hostage Survivors, Town Residents Compile Book, ________. Rich Haskell: I did not. T.C. Mark Junge: One of the things that Sue and I found out is that people don't regret doing this because they think it's important for history. I would peer through the windows, sit outside and watch over them during recess like a creeper just to make sure nothing was happening to them. One of 'em was in Cokeville and one was in the bus that he did the experiment with. And that's what we in this country have that these other fanatics or whatever is the family is the import factor. Rich Haskell: Oh my goodness! Blasting cap wires had been cut before detonation, a gasoline leak prevented explosive powder from setting the air on fire, and, despite a great deal of shrapnel, no one had been hit. PG-13. Doris took on part-time work as a housekeeper and waitress, but David became increasingly isolated. It was there for a long time, all that support. Used with permission and thanks. He shot and killed her. Because they weren't in a gun, the pressure wasn't chambered enough to where you could direct it. I did not have to imagine how God would move that day when I said my little prayer just hours before, I simply knew he would. Mark Junge: But all of these holes were above the level of the children. On May 16, 1986, he and his wife, Doris, invaded a classroom at Cokeville Elementary School and held 136 children and 17 teachers hostage with a crudely . Rich Haskell: Absolutely. You start messing with the kids, now you're going to have yourself a war. Anything? Casper Chapter, Wyoming Archaeological Society, June Frison chapter, Wyoming Archeological Society. Maybe writing that up 2 years ago when this came along was more healing for me than for him, but I gave it all to him! It brings back lots of memories but it doesn't hurt because actually it was a positive experience. Mark Junge: Okay. The faith-based film was released in select theaters across the United States in the summer of 2015, and was distributed by Deseret Book Company and affiliated retailers. She was on fire! Mark Junge: Did you find the bullet that killed him, too? Davids writings reveal that he hoped life would be better for him and Cokevilles children in this imaginary place. Young met his second wife, Doris Waters, while in Cokeville. No, this is something that people need to know about. Also, what do you want us to know about it that isn't covered in the film? One listener took the time to write an incredibly thoughtful response to the presentation. The prolific writer-director-cinematographer, whose credits include 17 Miracles and Ephraim's Rescue, has a passion for faith-promoting true stories that combine tragedy with divine intervention and heartbreak with hope.His latest, The Cokeville Miracle (read my review), portrays the events of a 1986 elementary school bombing, in which multiple children . People who had guns! Because of the experience and the different classes that I've attended, I know what bombs do to people, to buildings and to all kinds of structures. You see the bag ladies pullin' them around behind them when they go to the store and they can put their groceries in or whatever else. Little something my husband drew during church today. Rich Haskell: Yes. For me, the choice to believe in God, seek His hand and learn from the experience seemed the obvious choice. I saw an early screening of the film and absolutely loved it. I believe there was a hundred-and-sixty-plus people involved that was being held. Mark Junge: This bomb was designed to do what? As a result, the events of that May 16th not only showed the dark depths of humanity but also the bright potential of faith. There are parallels and significant differences worth taking a look at, guided by accounts from four survivors who graciously shared their stories with me. I've spent many, many hours and many days with the leaders of the Mormon church, with the Prophet of the Mormon church. You know this is going to sound morbid, but I always thought if the Muslims, the radical Muslims were smart, they would take their jihad to local communities because that would scare the hell out of 'em like it did in Cokeville. On that Friday afternoon in their quiet, rural town, a deranged couple entered the community's elementary school, took those inside hostage and detonated a bomb in a first grade classroom. In the meantime, David and Doris Young gathered children, teachers, staff and visitors in the elementary school into one central location. I remember seeing the wide eyes on my band teacher as he collapsed with the EMTs afterward. While he was writing his philosophy, Zero Equals Infinity, Doris took part-time jobs including housekeeping and waitressing to support their meager lifestyle. The photo of Rich Haskell is by Wyoming State Archives. This school is being taken hostage! Number one, that's where he worked. Katherine Payne recalled her dead grandmother telling her to listen to her brother, who then instructed her to wait by the window shortly before the bomb blast. How has that experience shaped your life? I immediately went into rendering safehe had brought in several devices with him to place in different places in the room, and there was a lot of ammunition, a lot of guns out in the hallway, and I immediately started rendering all those safe, making sure that those were safe and they could move them out of the building. cokeville miracle debunked. Oral histories, memoirs and drawings began to reveal a narrative of fortune rather than misfortune. Trauma is trauma and everyone deals with it differently. We just focused on being grateful. In the movie, it shows the tension building towards the prayer and then shortly after the bomb went off. I actually have a pretty clear memory of the events that day, being 12 years old. . David planned to negotiate with then-President Ronald Reagan before setting off a bomb that would take them all to a new world where he would reign supreme. On May 16, 1986, when former town marshal David Gary Young and his wife Doris Young took 154 children and 13 teachers hostage at Cokeville Elementary school in Wyoming, and kept them at bay with a shopping-cart sized bomb attached to five hairpin-trigger blast caps, it should have ended in great tragedy - one of the worst in American history. I think exploring this question can continue to offer healing to those pieces in us we don't fully recognize are hurt. This narrative was perpetuated in many publications and productions. Cokeville officially has only536 people in it and two LDS wards that meet in the same chapel. Hey, I am not the survivor, but I spent my summers in Cokeville, my family is from there, and I have been helping on publicity for the film. When you say what cut the wire? You know, the kids have forgot about it, let's let 'em move on. Mark Junge: Are you one of the most experienced people in the area? Now this is just for my own information and it doesn't have anything to do with this case, but whenever I read about a bomb threat in the paper, I think to myself, "Oh, no! You can't think, well, maybe something could happen, because yes it could. I contacted the dispatch up in Kemmerer to get firsthand information as to having second- and third-hand information and they informed me that the school indeed had been taken hostage. And I think that these people actually thought that they could start another world. And they had trouble keeping people away from the building. The Hartley story didn't come out publicly until my parents (who wrote the book in the year after the bombing) began asking questions about this kind of thing. Because it was sittin' low enough and the kids were low enough that it would have done it. Because of the tiles and the window? Here is a local story from the 20 year anniversary (we are at the 29th year now), What's your side of the story? Educated at Chadron State College in Nebraska, he had earned a degree in criminal justice, and was hired as Cokevilles town marshal in the 1970s. Mark Junge: This was a life-changing event. As reporters converged on Cokeville, another story emerged. "How we convert that experience into good and positive things matters," Kam said. Accessed May 28, 2013 at. I wondered for a moment if I was dead or alive, and I realized I needed to get out. ", Families and neighbors were in that room together, comforting and one another, "I don't remember what I uttered in that simple prayer almost 30 years ago, but I do know that as I sat there and held hands with other survivors, Heavenly Father was aware of us and listening," said Katie Walker Payne, then a first grader. In the tiny classroom, they watched movies, played games, prayed. 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