To the people involved, it was a miracle
on May 16, 1986, when a Wyoming school-bombing attempt failed, sparing 154 students
and teachers from dying.
Cokeville,
Wyoming, is a sleepy little town on the far west border of the state next to
Idaho. It is a predominantly Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints town where crazy things are never supposed to
happen. It is nestled between the towns of Afton and Kemmerer in Lincoln County.
It was always believed to be the safest place possible to raise children. The
schools were considered good and the teachers excellent.
But
all of this serenity changed 32 years ago this month
With
little warning, a nutty couple took over the school with guns and bombs and
promised to start killing people.
Books
have been written about the event and even a movie was filmed a few years ago. The
State Historical Society’s WyoHistory.org has compiled amazing data on the
event. See Jessica
Clark`s article at https://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia/cokeville-elementary-school-bombing,
which includes a
dozen oral histories by people who were there.
One
of the best books is Trial by Terror: The
Child-Hostage Crisis in Cokeville, Wyoming by Hartt and Judene Wixom.
Much
of the following is from their book.
The
perpetrator of all the danger was the town’s former lawman named David Young.
He and his wife Doris entered the town’s elementary school with a grocery cart
full of guns and gasoline bombs. Nobody saw such a threat coming. This was
decades before schools all over the country started keeping their doors locked.
Young
had been the town’s marshal in the 1970s. He was let go after his six-month
probationary period. He had recently married Doris Waters of Cokeville, a
divorcee who was a waitress and singer in a local bar.
After
their wedding, they moved to Tucson where David became more reclusive. He came
up with a scheme called “the Biggie,” and acquired some investment money from
friends.
His
Biggie plan was to invade the Cokeville School, hold the kids ransom for $2 million
apiece and then use the money to create what his friends said he called a Brave
New World
David,
his wife Doris and his daughter Princess from his first marriage entered the
school that Friday at 1 p.m. and took the entire school hostage. They herded
the 154 students, teachers, and other staff into one. It was a room that had a
capacity for just 30 students.
According
to the Trial by Terror book: David
set himself up in the center of the room with his guns and bombs while Doris
rounded up more folks. She told most of the younger students they were needed
for an all school assembly.
Once
they were all in the room he told them he was leading a revolution. He passed
out copies of his philosophy called Zero
Equals Infinity.
He
also sent copies to the president of Chadron State College (where he graduated),
President Ronald Reagan, and various media.
The
teachers tried to keep the students calm, especially the younger ones. They watched movies, played games and prayed.
Suddenly
at 4 p.m., the bomb exploded. People in
the room later said that just before the explosion, David had connected the
bomb to his wife. Then he went to the restroom,
which was next to the bigger room. Doris accidentally set off the bomb by
motioning to the hostages with her arms.
The explosion covered her in flames and burned some nearby children.
In
the chaos, David returned to find Doris thrashing in agony. He shot her dead
and then saw music teacher John Miller trying to escape. He shot Miller in the
back. Then he returned to the restroom and killed himself. The danger was over.
This
tragedy ended with just two fatalities, the perpetrator and his wife. Miller survived his injuries.
This
potential tragic story became a feel-good story across the country. But in Cokeville and the larger Mormon
community it took on a different theme – it was a miracle.
Many
recalled seeing angels during the crisis and prayer circles had been formed all
over town and over the West.
In
the book Witness to Miracles by the
Cokeville Miracle Foundation in 2005, Kameron Wixon, son of the authors of the
original book, wrote: “I didn’t have to see angels, hear them or even think
that their presence might be required. God did deliver our salvation that day.
I’m living proof.”
A
movie called The Cokeville Miracle
was made in 2015.
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