Madison School Shooting: Victims Remembered

A devoted teacher and a student brimming with artistic ambition are the Wisconsin school shooting victims

Updated: 6:01 AM EST Dec 19, 2024

Rubi Patricia Vergara was an “avid reader” and full of artistic promise, according to her online obituary.But the ninth grader and teacher Erin Michelle West were killed in a Monday morning shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, the Dane County Medical Examiner’s Office announced Wednesday.Six others were injured, two of whom remained hospitalized Wednesday, police said. The four others have been released. Their names have not been made public.Here’s what we know about the victims:Erin Michelle WestWest, 42, lived in DeForest, Wisconsin, and was a teacher at Abundant Life, officials said.She worked as a substitute teacher for three years before taking a position as the school’s substitute coordinator, Abundant Life’s communications director told the Associated Press.Angel Brube, a seventh grader who was present during the shooting, told CNN he knew West well, describing her as “kind and caring” and a great communicator.Abundant Life sophomore Mackynzie Wilson, who also knew West and saw her just hours before the shooting, told CNN that her teacher “really loved her kids.”“She was so excited to see her daughters grow up and what they were going to be and do with their lives,” Wilson said.West’s love for her children extended to “everyone at our school,” Wilson added. “She would have done anything for them… I just wish I could’ve gone back and given her a hug.”The sophomore described returning to school to be difficult because of the “fear and trauma built up.”Rubi Patricia VergaraVergara, a freshman at Abundant Life, comes from a big family.The 14-year-old “loved art, singing and playing keyboard” in her family worship band, according to her obituary. She had a particular soft spot for animals and “shared a special bond with her beloved pets, Ginger (cat) and Coco (dog).”Her funeral service will be held Saturday in Madison. Her burial will take place at Roselawn Memorial Park, her obituary read.

MADISON, Wis. —

Rubi Patricia Vergara was an “avid reader” and full of artistic promise, according to her online obituary.

But the ninth grader and teacher Erin Michelle West were killed in a Monday morning shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, the Dane County Medical Examiner’s Office announced Wednesday.

Six others were injured, two of whom remained hospitalized Wednesday, police said. The four others have been released. Their names have not been made public.

Here’s what we know about the victims:

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Erin Michelle West

West, 42, lived in DeForest, Wisconsin, and was a teacher at Abundant Life, officials said.

She worked as a substitute teacher for three years before taking a position as the school’s substitute coordinator, Abundant Life’s communications director told the Associated Press.

Angel Brube, a seventh grader who was present during the shooting, told CNN he knew West well, describing her as “kind and caring” and a great communicator.

Abundant Life sophomore Mackynzie Wilson, who also knew West and saw her just hours before the shooting, told CNN that her teacher “really loved her kids.”

“She was so excited to see her daughters grow up and what they were going to be and do with their lives,” Wilson said.

West’s love for her children extended to “everyone at our school,” Wilson added. “She would have done anything for them… I just wish I could’ve gone back and given her a hug.”

The sophomore described returning to school to be difficult because of the “fear and trauma built up.”

Rubi Patricia Vergara

Vergara, a freshman at Abundant Life, comes from a big family.

The 14-year-old “loved art, singing and playing keyboard” in her family worship band, according to her obituary. She had a particular soft spot for animals and “shared a special bond with her beloved pets, Ginger (cat) and Coco (dog).”

Her funeral service will be held Saturday in Madison. Her burial will take place at Roselawn Memorial Park, her obituary read.