Florida Shooting: Victims Had Ties To Huntington
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Left: Jaime Guttenberg; Right: Scott Beigel.
Photo/Facebook/Fred Guttenberg & Photo/Scott J. Beigel Memorial Fund
By Connor Beach & Janee Law
info@longislandergroup.com
Two of the 17 victims in the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that rocked the nation last week had ties to the Town of Huntington.
Jaime Guttenberg, a freshman at the school, was the daughter of a former East Northport resident.
Scott Beigel, 35, a teacher at the high school, grew up in Dix Hills.
In Parkland, Florida, at Majory Stoneman Douglas High School, Beigel served as a geography teacher, and also coached the school’s cross-country team.
He’s also now regarded as a hero. Witnesses of the shooting say Beigel was shot after he opened his classroom’s door to provide shelter to students hiding from the shooter, according to published reports.
A memorial fund, the Scott J. Beigel Memorial Fund, has been established by his family. A website for the fund states that hundreds attended Beigel’s funeral on Sunday in Boca Raton, Florida to remember “his sarcasm, wit and heroism that characterized his actions long before he died selflessly protecting students from the gunman.”
The memorial fund will provide scholarships to send underprivileged kids to summer camp, according to its website (Scottjbeigelmemorialfund.com).
On Tuesday, hundreds of runners in Parkland and across the county participated in a “Run 4 Beigel” event in honor of the cross-country coach’s memory.
Fourteen-year-old Jaime Guttenberg, a ninth-grader at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, was the daughter of a Commack High School North graduate and former East Northport resident.
Her father, Fred Guttenberg, stated in a Facebook post the day after the shooting that he and his family are “heartbroken.”
In memory of Jaime, who was regarded as a talented dancer, community members have launched an “Orange Ribbons For Jaime” movement.
“We are in awe of the outpouring of love and support and the growth of the orange ribbons for Jaime movement,” Guttenberg stated in a Facebook post. “The Orange Ribbon movement will become a symbol for change in our country.”
