Back at School After an Inconceivable Tragedy: Las Lomas Comes Together to Remember Matt and Gavin

On Tuesday, Las Lomas was filled with broken hearts, memories of Matt Miller and Gavin Powell, and students wearing yellow to celebrate the lives of two remarkable young men.

Tuesday, the day after a long holiday weekend, started out as any normal school day, except that two juniors were not present. 

Matt Miller and Gavin Powell.

The two had gone on a rafting trip over the weekend in Walnut Creek and things went terribly wrong.

Las Lomas grieved in many different ways.

Late Monday night, a few students started a campaign on a Facebook page, urging classmates to wear yellow to school on Tuesday to celebrate the lives of Matt and Gavin. The students chose yellow because it is the color Matt and Gavin loved to wear biking--it is the color one wears while biking to be seen by other cyclists and motorists.

The mood on campus started out solemnn. In several of my classes, teachers cried while talking about Matt and Gavin, and of how hard it will be to continue their jobs knowing that the two are gone.

In an announcement over the schoolwide intercom system, principal Matt Campbell urged students to stay close and to find comfort in the Las Lomas High  community.

"We need to come together as a Knight Family," said Campbell. He also talked about counseling services available during the day to students who were feeling sad or needed someone to talk to.

These services included crisis and other counselors on call in the library.

Meanwhile, art teachers set up a room with portraits and photographs that Matt and Gavin themselves produced, as well as a banner that students could sign to leave notes to Matt and Gavin's families.

"It's really, really hard," said social studies teacher Lisa Wentner. "You really want to make something positive out of the situation, but it's hard to find the right way to do justice to Matt and Gavin. It can be harder for some [students] than others."

Lori Gieleghem is an English teacher who had both Matt and Gavin in the Free Thinkers club which meets every Tuesday.

"They were fiercely intelligent, gentle souls, and real-life affirming human beings, and they will greatly be missed," said Gieleghem.

Many students throughout the day broke down in tears thinking about their fallen friends. For some to make sense of the situation, they simply left class and went to the library to talk to counselors about ways to remember Matt and Gavin.

Others visited the art room filled with the boys' art work, and wrote short notes to the boys' families, telling them how much they meant to the Las Lomas community. 

There was lots of talk around campus about ways to remember Matt and Gavin for years to come.

“I think that we should make plaques in the Rally Court, or dedicate the art building to Matt and Gavin," said junior Devin Madsen. "Maybe dedicate a plaque on the bike racks, or build a special stain-glass window so that students will never forget. We could also keep some of their artwork in the art room for everybody to see.” 

English teacher Beth Furstenthal, who taught Matt and Gavin sophomore year and Matt junior year, talked about how students reacted today when they saw one another.

“I felt that students were really supportive of each other," she said. "I think that there were a lot of students and teachers who were obviously still grieving and mourning the loss of two people they cared a lot about. Generally, I thought people were very kind and considerate. I saw a lot of respect today for how people were feeling."

“[Matt and Gavin] were the kind of people who would want to remember the happy moments, and the fun, and the good times they had shared,” said Furstenthal.