EARTH CITY 鈥 The last time Willie Kilpatrick spoke with Alexzandria Bell, she had just a few words for him: 鈥淢r. Kilpatrick, you do too much.鈥
The high school artistic director chuckled as he recalled this memory during the 15-year-old鈥檚 funeral service Saturday morning.
Kilpatrick said he then told Alexzandria to get herself a bag of chips from his office, noting he stocks it with snacks for students.
鈥淚鈥檓 talking to another student, she comes out with two or three bags of chips. I said, 鈥楢lex, you do too much.鈥欌
Kilpatrick was one of several speakers who addressed the hundreds of people gathered at Faith Church in Earth City to dance, sing and pray in honor of Alexzandria, the only student killed when a recent graduate opened fire the morning of Oct. 24 at Central Visual and Performing Arts High School (CVPA) and Collegiate School of Medicine and Bioscience. The two schools share a campus.
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Jean Kuczka, a 61-year-old health and physical education teacher at CVPA, was also shot and killed when she stood between the gunman and her students to protect them.
Seven others 鈥 15- and 16-year-olds 鈥 were wounded. Police stormed the school building within minutes, confronting and killing the gunman, 19-year-old Orlando Harris, in a third-floor classroom.
On Saturday, Alexzandria鈥檚 body lay in an open casket adorned with photos of her life at the front of the church鈥檚 chapel, illuminated by purple lights shimmering through the air made hazy by fog machines.
She was dressed in white, a diamond tiara on her head, as the dance major鈥檚 classmates performed on the stage in tribute to her.
鈥淲e love Alexzandria, she was so colorful, so bright, so diligent, so sassy,鈥 Kacy Sahid, CVPA principal, said. 鈥淎nd she would let you know, she was everything that embodied a Central Visual and Performing Arts student. She was creative, she was outspoken, she was bold and she was bright.鈥
Much like the dozens of kids killed by guns in just the last few years in St. 亚洲无码, Alexzandria鈥檚 face adorned T-shirts, sweatshirts and blankets throughout the church as her friends grieved and tapped into their religion for guidance.
As of Thursday, at least 103 children have been shot across the metropolitan area, including 21 who have died.
In the funeral鈥檚 program, Alexzandria鈥檚 mother Keisha Acres addressed the issue dominating the national dialogue about gun violence.
鈥淩emember: Pay attention to your children! Mental illness is real, so please seek help,鈥 she wrote.
In a notebook discovered after the shooting, Harris wrote that he had mental health issues, but felt none of the medical professionals he worked with had taken him seriously.
State Rep. LaKeySha Bosley, whose district stretches from Hyde Park south to the Tower Grove East neighborhood, apologized during the service, saying the Legislature did not do enough to prevent the school shooting 鈥 and the gun violence affecting so many St. 亚洲无码 families.
Bosley, who presented Bell and Kuczka鈥檚 families with resolutions honoring their lives and legacies, described Alexzandria as a vibrant child with many nicknames 鈥 such as Mabel, Sparkle and Boogie 鈥 each name with its own distinct personality.
She said the resolution will make sure Alexzandria鈥檚 life is a piece of history never forgotten.
鈥淲e will be able to go back in history this day and every day, and remember the honor and legacy of Alexzandria鈥檚 life,鈥 Bosley said, a sentiment met with applause.
Assistant Pastor Kymberly Battler with the Greater True Vine Miracle Temple said she also had a nickname for the teen.
鈥淪he was my little cousin but she called me 鈥楾ee Tee鈥 ... and I called her my pretty niece,鈥 she said. 鈥淓very Sunday when she came to church when she was a little girl she would come tap on my shoulder (to say hi).鈥
In addition to Bosley, St. 亚洲无码 Mayor Tishaura O. Jones and St. 亚洲无码 Public Schools Superintendent Kelvin Adams attended the funeral, and their presence was acknowledged during the service.
Alexzandria鈥檚 godmother, Ra茅 Holmes, told the packed room she is Acres鈥 cousin.
鈥淚鈥檓 really up here to say thank you to Keisha for affording me the opportunity to be her godmom,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 always said (Alexzandria) looked like Keisha and acted like me, but it was such a pleasure and honor to literally feel like I had an opportunity to have a child.鈥
Holmes said she and Acres will still throw the 16th birthday party they had planned for Alexzandria, whose birthday is Nov. 18.
鈥淎nd when the people fade, it鈥檚 me and you baby,鈥 she said to Acres. 鈥淔orever.鈥
Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct Holmes' relationship to Acres.