Teacher Saves Lives After Tackling Gunman At Bend High School

Four lives ended in cold blood at Bend High School's Silver Rail Elementary when a gunman turned picture day into a nightmare. The attacker was 16-year-old Griffin John II. He shot three children, aged five, eight, and eleven, and killed their teacher, Meghan Lambert, who was 25 years old.

A female educator became the focus of praise after she threw her cellphone at John and tackled him to the floor. Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz called her actions incredible. She suffered no injuries herself but almost certainly stopped further bloodshed by fighting for the weapon.

The tragedy unfolded on Thursday, a day meant for smiles and camera flashes. Parents drove their kids off with hope in their hearts. Instead of celebration, families waited hours unsure if their children lived or died. Joe Camarlinghi spoke to The Oregonian about that terrifying silence. He said he felt sick at heart seeing other parents scan the parking lot. They all wondered the same thing: is my child safe? Some realized those school pictures would be the final ones they would ever see of their kids.

Injuries extended beyond the four who died. A seven-year-old student using a wheelchair and educational assistant Becky Drury, 54, survived but were hurt in the attack. Drury's husband asked for privacy during this unimaginably difficult time. His family thanked neighbors for showing kindness when they needed it most.

Kaylub Giamanco also became a hero by running into the school to stop John's rampage. Camarlinghi called Giamanco a dad who answered prayers. Krantz said Giamanco saved lives with quick thinking and immense courage. That type of bravery rarely appears in society today, yet these two adults stood up when it mattered most.

John fired as many as 15 shots during the incident. Police found he still had 44 rounds left after being shot dead. The community gathered for vigils the next day. People placed flowers at an impromptu memorial near Silver Rail Elementary. One woman from Bend laid a wreath to honor the victims.

The pain remains raw for friends, teachers, and neighbors alike. Relief came only when parents finally reunited with their children, yet that relief felt small against the hurt of losing colleagues and classmates. Processing such loss takes time. The community mourns as they try to make sense of a day that shattered everything they held dear.

One parent whose child attends the school admitted that the events are still hard to process today. The gunman opened fire inside a special education classroom, a place he knew well from his own childhood days at the same building. Authorities stated John was so focused on hitting his old class that he circled back to the rear door after getting shot while trying to enter through the front gate.

He walked all the way to Silver Rail Elementary even though he was not currently enrolled in any Bend public school program there right now. Investigators are looking closely at how he managed to reach the campus on foot without alerting anyone beforehand. At one point he tossed a Maverick 88 twelve gauge pump action shotgun over the fence line but then found himself blocked from moving inside that way.

Instead of giving up he sprinted toward the back entrance and blasted through a safety vestibule system meant to protect children from intruders. Police officers admitted they do not know exactly how John got his bullets since the investigation into those weapons remains very active at this time. Kelsey Giamanco and her brother Kyle spoke with friends of their late son to confirm he was the hero who rushed inside the school during the attack.

He holds a concealed carry permit and knew the family of the seven year old boy in a wheelchair who was wounded earlier that day. Griffin died just minutes after starting his rampage when Kalub Giamanco fired at him from his vehicle while driving home for lunch. Bend Chief of Police Mike Krantz thanked the heroic father and teacher during a press conference held on Friday morning.

Photos shared last month showed John with a patchy mustache and goatee staring into cameras with a sullen expression on his face. His mother Shauntai Nickerson told reporters in 2020 that she was happy students were returning to classrooms because her son struggled during the distance learning era of the pandemic. She explained that in person classes would be great for Griffin since she is not certified to teach special needs students anymore.

John participated in a program called Nurturing Empathy Safety and Trust which helped special education students facing intensive behavioral and social skills challenges every week. He used his mother's shotgun to carry out the massacre according to police reports that said he bought it around the time of his sixteenth birthday. Nickerson insisted to reporters outside her Bend home that her son was a good boy who she would have stopped if she could figure out how to do so.

Investigators raided his family residence on Thursday night and seized computers along with other electronic devices while saying the family cooperated fully with officers. Kelik Summer identified five year old Rhoam as one of the victims killed during that tragic shooting on Thursday afternoon. His father wrote on Facebook that today was the worst day of their lives because their son Rhoam died in a school shooting incident nearby.

The family said they feel broken and lost yet remain surrounded by friends and relatives who are keeping them safe from further harm right now. Lambert was identified by police and her own family on Friday during another press conference where details about the victims were finally released to the public. Her family remembers her as having a deep passion for sports and an ambition toward becoming a teacher someday in their community.

She lit up every room and carried a huge heart full of compassion. Her family says this showed when she refused pay for her first season coaching volleyball. Families who couldn't afford to play got a chance because of that choice, according to the statement released by her loved ones. They also noted she was funny and held strong opinions while fighting for the underdog. She fought specifically for those with special needs.

Meghan loved those children deeply, the family declared. Her goal remained clear: become an educator in the school district she loved growing up in. Silver Rail Elementary became her first job as a teacher, though she had served there as a substitute for many years before that day arrived. She truly loved Silver Rail. That place was her dream job according to everyone who spoke out about her life and work.