UK ROTC honors victims through military tradition

By Lauren Prather

While the shooting killing 13 people and wounding 30 on Thursday occurred in Fort Hood, Texas, three UK ROTC students found a way to pay tribute in Lexington.

Pershing Rifleman Chris Peterson, Air Force Cadet Hunter Williams and Commanding Officer Charles Hoffman conducted a changing of the guard and rifle inspection every 20 minutes from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. to commemorate the deceased soldiers.

The Thursday shooting occurred at a military processing center in Fort Hood, Texas, according to media reports as of Sunday evening.

The primary suspect is Maj. Malik Hasan, at a practicing psychiatrist at Darnall Army Medical Center in Ft. Hood.

Williams said he immediately felt remorse in reaction to the shooting.

“I really felt bad at first,” Williams said. “A little sense of anger came later.”

For Peterson, the shooting hit particularly close to home. Last summer, he participated in a cadet troop leader training session and his father was once stationed there.

“It was close to my heart,” he said.

After hearing about the shooting, Peterson said he called his sponsor from his summer session to make sure no one he knew was hurt.

“I felt sick to my stomach,” he said. “It was one of the most wrong things you can do as a soldier, to kill people on your team.”

Hoffman heard about the shooting around 2:30 p.m. Thursday and said he was initially shocked by the news.

“It’s tragic. We need to support the men and women affected by it,” Hoffman said.

Williams chose to participate in Friday’s vigil as a way to pay respect to the families and victims of the shooting.

“I think the Fort Hood incident really emotionally hit home,” Williams said. “As someone going into the military, it’s a way to show respect.”