Dozens of Michigan State University alumni living in the D.C. area gathered Thursday evening for a candlelight vigil at Dupont Circle. They grieved and supported each other following Monday’s shooting at the school that left three students dead and five injured.
“I felt guilty not being able to be on campus,” said Casey Ring, who graduated from Michigan State just last year.
Ring said a dark cloud would be around the school for some time.
“I think about going back to a football game and the thought of enjoying myself and having fun tailgating with those I grew up with and those I went to college with seems nearly impossible,” Ring said.
Karalyn Vanslambrouck graduated from the school four years ago and was also at the vigil.
“Having a sense of community like this makes you feel like you can get through it,” she said.
Vanslambrouck’s sister is currently a junior at Michigan State.
“She was sheltered in place with her roommates,” she said. “They had the lights turned off and locked their doors and windows. It was a lot of uncertainty.”
The Associated Press reported the shooter was found with two handguns and a note containing a possible motive for the attack.
The 9 mm guns, dozens of rounds of ammunition and the two-page note were found with Anthony McRae when he killed himself Monday night after being confronted by police, said campus deputy chief Chris Rozman.
Investigators said they still were trying to pin down a motive three days after the violence at the 50,000-student campus in East Lansing, but the note was a key point.
“It appears, based on the content of the note, that he felt he was slighted in some way by people or businesses,” Rozman said at a news conference. “Did a mental health issue amplify that or was it a component of that? We’re not sure at this point. We’re working our best to try to determine that as best as possible.”
McRae, 43, was the lone shooter and had no connection to the victims or to Michigan State as a student or employee, police said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
