That much I know. But David refused to reveal his plans entirely until moments before they unfolded. I explained that she was the teacher that led me out when the bomb went off. Mark Junge: This was a life-changing event. I was a little bit nervous, of course. Prayer and Miracles: Cokeville Bombing Lessons Told to a Columbine Survivor As a society we tend to talk around or mock prayer and having faith in God. Focusing on the positive, rather than the negative helped immensely. Cursed by Spirits: The Strange Tale of the Winchester Mystery House, Inferno: 7 People Who Claim Theyve Been to Hell and Back, Divine Suffering: 7 People Who Claimed to Have the Stigmata. She is a trained rural historian who specializes in oral history, childhood history and memory studies. Thank you for sharing your witness that God is real and that He knows about tiny wounds in mortal souls that need a balm of healing. 1 of 7. You HAVE to find the positives or the negatives can eat you up the rest of your life. He was asking large amounts of money. Available on Prime Video, Tubi TV. Rich Haskell: There was also ayou look through the ceiling and there was a bigger hole up there. You can ask me anything about this today between 1-2pm. Katherine Payne recalled her dead grandmother telling her to listen to her brother, who then instructed her to wait by the window shortly before the bomb blast. I never did get to see that untilI think it was two days lateractually what they had taken as far as the paperwork was concerned. Sue Castaneda: Carla said that some people were mad that we were there. Outside, parents surged at police lines to reach their children and shouted their names. We had people from ATFAlcohol, Tobacco and Firearmsand there was another bomb technician that came up from Evanstonhe was studying to be a bomb technicianand we all looked at that and said, "That wire's been cut." I really did not even want to walk inside that building because I was just afraid that I'd see kids all over the place. I want to really live and make a positive difference in the lives of others.". Welcome to /r/latterdaysaints, a sub for members and friends of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (formerly known as Mormons). Rich Haskell: Approximately an hour and ten, hour and fifteen minutes. He was in high fevers until the therapist allowed him to speak openly. I've spent many, many hours and many days with the leaders of the Mormon church, with the Prophet of the Mormon church. Rich Haskell: No. He did it right. May 16, 1986, will never be forgotten by the residents of Cokeville, Wyo. And what happens if they trigger something accidently?" Had a gallon milk jug full of gasoline on one level, had aluminum powder, flour and those two components was in tuna fish cans directly under the gasoline bomb. The bomb went off and no one died, except the perpetrators. He was dismissed, however, from this position shortly after his six-month probationary period. Mark Junge: No? And that's where the bomb sat and that's where they sat. Christensen Hartt Wixom (based on the book: "The Cokeville Miracle) Wyoming State Parks and Cultural Resources, Cheyenne. On May 16, 1986, an elementary school in the tiny town of Cokeville, Wyoming, was held hostage by a married couple with a bomb. I had just cracked a little joke with a toy tank of legos as I drove it "across the death line" or the masking tape square on the floor. But it still sent flames all over in the room and you can see where all the flames were in that room. Carbon County School District No. Now you've got problems. I didn't look at the speedometer, I was just kind of watchin' for animals and everything else. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Rich Haskell: Well, as we were talking before we started recording, because of my knowledge with the explosives and with the law enforcement and everything else, I've had many opportunitiesbecause of the explosivesI've been with Vice President Cheney when he was here in Wyoming up in Pinedale. There was nobody killed but the perpetrators. ", Fresh off this experience and sensitive to the impact of talking about heavy topics, a friend looped me into a Facebook thread about a new movie coming out in June called "The Cokeville Miracle.". You see the bag ladies pullin' them around behind them when they go to the store and they can put their groceries in or whatever else. . We just focused on being grateful. Mark Junge: How many actual bombs have you had experience with? And then what? Mark Junge: Well, yes. Now you are a bomb technician. At that time all of the different agencies was pretty much on the same radio frequency and I was stayin' in touch with them, lettin' them know what my location was and they were in turn telling me what was taking place. Mark Junge: Well, you've been blessed in a lot of ways. Wake up to the day's most important news. Read 40 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. Contact us at editor@wyohistory.org for information on levels and types of available sponsorships. It is a touchy topic for us, and could come across the wrong way. Rich Haskell: Well, I like to think I'm a better person because of it. It brings back lots of memories but it doesn't hurt because actually it was a positive experience. Personally I gave him 17 pages of journal notes! Well, you know how fine that dust is. Flames filled the room, with Doris on fire and several children burnt by the bomb. When the bomb was triggered a miracle took place guardian angels saving the lives of the innocent. They had a circle of tape around the device itself and they said, "Do not come inside of this circle. They learned to trust in their God, the kids were healed for the most part, and they value life more now. Write CSS OR LESS and hit save. Frantic parents, gathered behind police barricades, cried out for their children as police officers ran toward the school. Is that morbid thinking on my part? Is there a news article that I could read to get a better idea of what happened? I think you should know that it can be difficult to watch - but that it has a very rewarding outcome. Everybody that was inside that room, they just started throwin' them out the windows, out the doors, just anyand she happened to be one they threw out the window. Rich Haskell: Well, after I arrived it took probably three to four hours to make sure everything was neutral and everything was not going to be a threat any longer. Investigators found that the bomb had been perhaps miraculously broken. In the West? Thus, when David and Doris Young entered the towns only elementary school with an arsenal of weapons and a gasoline bomb in a grocery cart, no one saw it coming. He was the father of two, but was estranged from his elder daughter. I contacted the dispatch up in Kemmerer to get firsthand information as to having second- and third-hand information and they informed me that the school indeed had been taken hostage. Mark Junge: Are you one of the most experienced people in the area? My parents were so thankful we survived that we didn't spend time EVER talking about David and Doris Young or why they would do this horrible act. Rich Haskell: I think it could be a spiritual experience that I have with church, or being around the kids, I don't know. I did see the lighting had changed in the room, and it was right in the same timeline as everyone else's witness. It's about the Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis, which occurred on May 16th, 1986, in Cokeville, Wyoming, where the former town marshal, David Young, and his wife, Doris Young, took 136 children and 18 adults hostage at the Cokeville Elementary School. They wanted to do this for me. Current students at Cokeville Elementary School aren't taught about the '86 bombing, but most know the general story. We know he built two of 'em. Everything was blackened. So if it can happen there it can happen anywhere in the United States. 10 Years Later, Cokeville Just Says: Let Us Be., Pierce, Scott D. Save the Children is Shallow, Exploitative: Focus is on Wacko Bomber Instead of 167 Cokeville Students and Teachers., Troone, Trent. This can, the aluminum powder, never went off. Used with permission and thanks. Mark Junge: And your great-grandkids? I mean, we're talking about from kindergarten kids up to 10-, 11-, 12-years old. What is sacred to some, is smeared by others - even after we hear eye-witness accounts of miracles. May 16, 1986, will never be forgotten by the residents of Cokeville, Wyo. They were sitting out across the fence with scopes on their rifles just ready to shoot until the sheriff went out and said, "No. This is not a Mormon film it is more of an inspirational film. In so doing, he only hit one person music teacher John Miller, whod been helping others escape. The kids couldn't have done it. By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. I actually have a pretty clear memory of the events that day, being 12 years old. It'sI'm still doing that kind of thing because whenever they hold General Conference in Salt Lake City I go to Salt Lake City to be part of the bomb team for the church while they have General Conference. At that point, David left to use the bathroom and entrusted the bomb to Doris. Audio/Video Recording. Mark Junge: Today is the 23rd of September, 2010. There are parallels and significant differences worth taking a look at, guided by accounts from four survivors who graciously shared their stories with me. He shot and killed her. Rich Haskell: No. Jennie Sorensen Johnson was a first grader at Cokeville, but cautious about sharing her experience because of potential ridicule from others. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. Go to school and learn how to do it." I mean, okay, you lose the Twin Towers, you might get the Pentagon damaged, but if somebody's town hall or school is blown up in Star Valley [Wyo.] When I walked inside of the classroomit was a kindergarten classroom which meant that the desks were smaller, everything was smaller because of the smaller children. Mark Junge: We were worried, Sue and I, that people would take offence, right? It was unexpected and they didn't recognize this woman, but who doesn't love a surprise? Wyoming Town Still Healing a Year After School Bombing., Schoolhouse Blast Still Felt a Year Later., Survivor is My Name: Cokeville Elementary School Bombing1986 News Report Audio. Audio Recording. What is your assessment of these two people who did this? What had happenedI can't explain it. Rich Haskell: I don't know. Following the explosion, 79 children were taken to area hospitals, most of which were located more than an hours drive from Cokeville, for treatment for burns and smoke inhalation. TC is one of my heroes. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. The town has worked to be as respectful as possible to the multitude of experiences that day. Sept. 21, 2010. How the Historic Persecution of Witches Led to the Infamous Salem Horrifying Old Hag Ghost Caught on Camera at Fort Worth Museum, Nightmare Fuel: 7 Strange and Creepy Demons From Around the World, In the Blood: 19 People Confess their Deepest and Darkest Family Secrets, 10 Strange and Sinister Sance Pictures from the Turn of the 20th Century, 6 Strange Supernatural Events Witnessed by Police Officers. Peterson, Carol. There's a piece of wood in there that separates the jaws of a clothespin and in that clothespin there are two metal connections that the wires were hooked to which made the electrical connection with the bomb. Well, when I arrived at Cokeville, of course they had the roads all blocked off and there was not a lot of people around the school at the time. Sep 29, 2015. It was within the first few weeks that the Hartley boy was explaining his witness. Mark Junge: Which means you had to be doing over a hundred miles an hour! Returning to the Church, but a bit confused. It has shaped me to know that God is real. WyoHistory.org welcomes the support of the following sponsors. Even lead investigator Ron Hartleys son pointed to an image of his grandmother as the angel whod protected him in the fire. results in the deaths of perpetrators David and Doris Young; 154 hostages survive. What is sacred to some, is smeared by others - even after we hear eye-witness accounts of miracles. The Power of Faith: 25 Years After School Bombing, Town Remembers Story of Survival., Mitchell, Ruth Ann. On May 16, 1986, David Young, Cokeville's former town marshal, and his wife, Doris, carried five rifles, five handguns and a "dead man's bomb" into the elementary school. Mark Junge: What were they designed to do? "My brother came over and told my sister and me to go sit by the window. (Laughs) But as I was passing through Kemmerer I stayed in radio contact. By Liz Carlston, Contributor Author, Traveler and Culture Observer According to survivor accounts, Doris enticed many into the first grade room by announcing that their presence was required for a school assembly. I believe there was a hundred-and-sixty-plus people involved that was being held. I was up there as part of his protection team. I know there's angels. Now this is just for my own information and it doesn't have anything to do with this case, but whenever I read about a bomb threat in the paper, I think to myself, "Oh, no! Midnight Hour: 7 Paranormal Games to Play in the Dark Tonight, 30 Scary Two Sentence Horror Stories To Read In The Dark, True Crime: The 10 Most Infamous American Murder Mysteries, Urban Legend: 25 People Share the Scariest Stories from their Hometowns, The Haunting Stories Behind Six Strange and Unusual Graves, Campfire Stories: 13 Terrifying Accounts of Paranormal Encounters in the Wilderness. Doris even tried to soothe the students nerves by telling them to think of the day as a story or an adventure movie. So there's doubt in your mind that there was divine intervention? I can understand that. Mark Junge: Do you know the names and birthdates of all your grandchildren? One of the unique things that I noticed when I went into that room and I don't know if any of the other people have told you about it or whatever else, but when I walked into that room you could see the outline on the whiteboard of an angel. the cokeville miracle debunked. I didn't touch the body at all. In short, what could have been a tragedy had become a miracle. When were you satisfied that there were no more bombs? Mark Junge: Did you find the bullet that killed him, too? Shortly after their wedding, David and Doris left Cokeville and headed to Tucson, Ariz. During their time in Tucson, according to Doris daughter Bernie Petersen, David became increasingly reclusive, focusing on his philosophical readings and writings. TC, I think, saw it the same way. However, Young clearly understood the nature of his planned crime, as he only revealed the plan to Deppe and Menenhall on the way to Cokeville Elementary. How much interaction did you have with the director/producers of the movie? Would like LDS Architecture Controversy in Connecticut, Press J to jump to the feed. 2 Recreation Board, Indigenous People in Wyoming and the West, Emergency Management Coordinator Kathy Davison on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, EMT Glenna Walker, Mother of Three Young Children, on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Lead Investigator Ron Hartley, Father of Four Student Survivors, on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Public Works Director and Fireman Kevin Walker, Father of Three Young Children, on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Secretary Tina Cook on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, First grade teacher Janel Dayton on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Second grade teacher Carol Petersen on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Third grade student Rachel Walker Hollibaugh on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Third grade student Jamie Buckley King on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Fourth grade teacher Kliss Sparks on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Fourth grade student LeaKae Roberts on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Green River Historic Preservation Commission, Natrona County Board of Cooperative Educational Services, Natrona County Recreation Joint Powers Board, Sublette County Historical Preservation Board, University of Wyoming School of Energy Resources, Casper Chapter, Wyoming Archaeological Society, June Frison chapter, Wyoming Archeological Society. 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