You have to think about what you're doing right at that particular time so you can stay focused on what you have to deal with. Rich Haskell: Well, I did learn later that the kids saw the angels. Gratitude is a great healer. On one hand people didn't want money to be made off of suffering, but on the other hand it felt ungrateful to not share it in the way that TC would or could. . Davids friends did not know that the Biggie was a plan to take over Cokeville Elementary School, hold each of the children hostage for $2 million dollars apiece and then detonate the bomb, transporting the money and children to his Brave New World, where he would be God. Is This The Most Sinister Ghost Picture Ever Taken? Kindle $6.99 Rate this book The Cokeville Miracle: When Angels Intervene Hartt Wixom, Judene Wixom 3.83 254 ratings43 reviews "This is a revolution! We figured that he had dropped down on his knee, took his pistol and shot her to put her out of her misery, because when we went out and looked at her, there was a hole up through the bottom of her chin, and it came out the top of her head. I simply got on my knees and started crawling in the exact direction I needed to go.". PG-13. When they asked pointed questions like "what did the angels look like?" Certified Bomb Technician. Of course, I can imagine the noise that it made. Christensen loves a good story. Thank you for sharing your witness that God is real and that He knows about tiny wounds in mortal souls that need a balm of healing. Lori recounted several miracles from that day. They messed with the kids and that brought a whole communityin fact, it brought the whole western half of the state all together. As I come to the junctionI'm sorry, I don't know what the road is that goes over to Bear Lakebut as I was passing that intersection, they did inform me that the bomb had exploded. Survivors shared their stories with each other, investigators, family members, and hospital personnel. 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. They were sitting out across the fence with scopes on their rifles just ready to shoot until the sheriff went out and said, "No. Sue Castaneda: Did you look at (unintelligible). I didn't touch the body at all. Teachers shouted for everyone to get down, and a dark cloud of black smoke filled the room as chaos ensued. Doris took on part-time work as a housekeeper and waitress, but David became increasingly isolated. The Cokeville hostage crisis began the afternoon of May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took 154 children and adults hostage at the Cokeville Elementary School in tiny Cokeville, Wyo. Rich Haskell: And fourteen and a half great-grandchildren. It brings back lots of memories but it doesn't hurt because actually it was a positive experience. "I think all of us were hurt by what happened that day at Columbine," writes Margie Duffy. Rich Haskell: There was also ayou look through the ceiling and there was a bigger hole up there. Then, several years later, Jennie Sorensen identified what she thought was a teacher who led her out of the building after the blast. 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 know it is real. Sheriff Ron Hartley will overlook his skepticism when he witnesses a miraculous intervention during the siege. I did see the lighting had changed in the room, and it was right in the same timeline as everyone else's witness. Mark Junge: And that's the lesson we learn. While David and Doris Young were not involved in an organized religion, both were deeply spiritual. It was just shootin' everywhere. "We all remembered exactly where we were when we heard the news. All the kids were saved. Everything was blackened. Sheriff Ron. 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. He was so open to their input, and feelings. He used to work in Cokeville. However, most had been sitting near the windows and doors, so teachers and staff began shoving students out of the room. I'm proud of all my children. Mark Junge: No? The knowledge that God lives, and is still a God of miracles in this modern day has molded much of my thinking.". Personally I gave him 17 pages of journal notes! Rich Haskell: If it would have went off like it was supposed to have gone off, it would have lifted the roof off of that school. Mark Junge: Well, you've been blessed in a lot of ways. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. Mark Junge: Okay. I wondered what that was, but then immediately noticed my friends over by the door talking to Doris. Mark Junge: Do you think he took up thatwanted to take that up because of you? Upon entering the classroom, children saw an arsenal of weapons, a grocery cart and an unfamiliar manDavid Young. There's a piece of wood in there that separates the jaws of a clothespin and in that clothespin there are two metal connections that the wires were hooked to which made the electrical connection with the bomb. Mark Junge: Do you think David or Doris would have cut it? David Young was mentally troubled throughout his life, but, for a time, he was able to focus on his career. He listened so well, so patiently. As reporters converged on Cokeville, another story emerged. 154 of us were held hostage for almost 3 hours in a 30x32 room when the bomb actually detonated - all 154 hostages survived. His fever broke within minutes of getting it off his chest. He came out of the bathroom, is what we figured. In the West? Rich Haskell: Absolutely! Little something my husband drew during church today. You can't think, well, maybe something could happen, because yes it could. On May 9, 1986, in the small, ranching community of Cokeville, Wyoming, David and Doris Young took an elementary school hostage for several hours before detonating a bomb inside a classroom that held every teacher and student in the school. I'm currently the Sheriff of Sweetwater County. I know the purpose I was saved and that purpose calls me MOM!". So many of 'em thatI don't know. But we knew what our story was, and that it could help offer hope. Carbon County School District No. 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. There are some survivors that couldn't believe how accurate much of it was. It was a great movie, very well directed and acted. For me, what has impressed me about the film is not necessarily the story of Angels (which are remarkable), but that the majority of the 154 hostages chose to see God's hand in their lives that day. Mark Junge: Are you one of the most experienced people in the area? Mark Junge: You think when we talk to you to bring this up againI know you're emotional about itbut does it hurt you to talk about this? ", "I have learned that each healing journey is different and that I can't heal for someone else or take their pain as they walk their own individual healing journey," Katie observes. After a stand-off lasting two and a half hours, the gasoline bomb the couple had brought into the school went off prematurely, badly burning Doris Young while David Young was out of the room. "My thoughts are immediately drawn to that day with any of these triggers," Jennie said. This can, the aluminum powder, never went off. This wasn't a simple bomb. I don't know. She tied the string around her wrist. I'm not saying all of 'em were bombs, but why did God cut out Cokeville and say nobody's going to get hurt in this? I've got a couple of questions. Well, with the window being open, with the ceiling tiles being able to lift up and down, I think that absorbed a lot of the explosion of the gasoline bottle. They feel that it was a positive experience for them. May 16, 1986, will never be forgotten by the residents of Cokeville, Wyo. But I know that, well, I'll just be quite frank. When the thing went off, when the bomb exploded, they just started chuckin' people out the windows. 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 . Mark Junge: They weren't big enough, in a way. Totally destroyed it! Yeah. 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. Oral histories, memoirs and drawings began to reveal a narrative of fortune rather than misfortune. What is sacred to some, is smeared by others - even after we hear eye-witness accounts of miracles. She is a trained rural historian who specializes in oral history, childhood history and memory studies. David returned to the restroom and killed himself, ending the hostage crisis. Jennie Sorensen Johnson reported a teacher helping her flee the burning classroom, only to recognize the figure much later in life as her long-dead great-aunt. For more information about our sponsors and the people behind WyoHistory.org, visit our About Us page: Hostage crisis at the elementary school in Cokeville, Wyo. Cokeville Children Held Hostage by Bomber., Cokeville Elementary School Bombing: 25-Years Later. Accessed May 17, 2013, at, Fagg, Ellen. Mark Junge: Curious, Rich. Even lead investigator Ron Hartleys son pointed to an image of his grandmother as the angel whod protected him in the fire. That's what it was designed to do was to go out and be particles and that gasoline was gonna ignite it and blow it up. Rich Haskell: Approximately three and a half days. Rich Haskell: Well, I got a lot of it while I was in the Marine Corps and in the Army National Guard. So if it can happen there it can happen anywhere in the United States. Rich Haskell: No. "How we convert that experience into good and positive things matters," Kam said. How did you determine how everything looked when this went up in smoke itself. What should people know going into the film? We didn't know if the blasting caps were in therejust exactly what was in there. How the Historic Persecution of Witches Led to the Infamous Salem Horrifying Old Hag Ghost Caught on Camera at Fort Worth Museum, Nightmare Fuel: 7 Strange and Creepy Demons From Around the World, In the Blood: 19 People Confess their Deepest and Darkest Family Secrets, 10 Strange and Sinister Sance Pictures from the Turn of the 20th Century, 6 Strange Supernatural Events Witnessed by Police Officers. On May 16, 1986, an elementary school in the tiny town of Cokeville, Wyoming, was held hostage by a married couple with a bomb. Cokeville Recollects Miracle of 1986: Hostage Survivors, Town Residents Compile Book, ________. This sub is dedicated to faithful discourse on church topics. Mark Junge: That's a record of all the people we've talked to! David emerged from the bathroom to find his wife in excruciating pain. 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