Danvers Students Hold Vigil for Slain Teacher Colleen Ritzer

By John Castelluccio and Owen Boss

The crowd gathered outside Danvers High School Wednesday night for a student-led vigil in memory of Colleen Ritzer easily surpassed 1,000 people.

Hundreds of parents, students, staff, alumni and friends came to reflect and remember Ritzer for her lasting impression on the community. The math teacher was killed sometime on Tuesday, prosecutors say, by one of her students.

The vigil itself was held in the parking lot next to the tennis courts in front of the school and the event was closed to members of the press, who were asked to stay off the physical school property.

Attendees arrived to the vigil wearing Danvers High School athletic gear and sports uniforms. Some were crying.

Lit candles were distributed among the crowd, there was a song or hymn at one point and then a chance for people to offer a personal reflection, according to residents who spoke with reporters on their way home.

According to Police Chief Neil Ouellette, the event was entirely organized by National Honor Society students.

"[They] decided to hold this vigil this evening in testament to what they thought of Colleen and everything she did for this community," he told reporters during a brief press conference after the vigil.

"It just breaks my heart," said Selectman Dave Mills, who was among the crowd, reflecting on the events of the past day. "It just breaks my heart."

Students who stopped to speak with reporters on their way home said this is the first time something like this (the murder) has happened at the school and in some ways, people don't know how to respond. Other students said the vigil was "touching" and very meaningful.

A female student-athlete said Ritzer was her teacher last year and "a really great person" who was always willing to help students. She actually just ran into Ritzer Tuesday morning -- little did she know it would be for the last time.

A young female student, speaking with a reporter, said she actually sat next to Philip Chism nearly every day for class and described him as a quiet, friendly student who didn't seem to have too many friends, so she made an extra effort to be nice to him.

She said she never would have expected he could be capable of this -- accused of murdering his math teacher. As for Ritzer, she was a "great teacher" who was kind to everyone.

Students also took to social media in the hours following the news of Ritzer's death and posted fond memories of their teacher.

"It's a beautiful testament, especially to the students here and the high school community, to come together at the spur of the moment and say a prayer and gather together to just gain some strength," said state Rep. Ted Speliotis, who also attended the vigil.

Speliotis said that more than being shocked at the unfolding tragedy, he was just "extremely sad."

"It just shows the vulnerability of people in today's world when they're dealing with hundreds of students and different people in different walks of life. People are just exposed and when they're exposed...sometimes it's a dangerous time, it's a dangerous world," he said.

"I think [the vigil] is especially important, because for many students, it's their high school, [it's] an extension of their family... It's where they first experience all the real highs and real lows of life -- the real tragedies and ecstasies of life, and this is certainly one of the tragedies," Speliotis said.

"This event, more than anything, is a respect for life; what occurred yesterday is a complete lack of respect for life," he said.

For video of the vigil click over to Danvers Patch's video montage from the remembrance or watch the attached report from WCVB.

If you have photos from the vigil you'd like to share with Danvers, you can upload them to our "Town Square" section.