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Archdiocesan Schools Join Nation In Honoring Shooting Victims

SOUTH FLORIDA (CBSMiami) – Across South Florida and around the nation Friday morning, residents and businesses honored the 20 children and six adults murdered at a Newtown, Conn. elementary school one week ago.

Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy penned a letter to state governors requesting their respective states observe a moment of silence for the shooting victims. Governor Rick Scott asked Floridians to join Connecticut residents in honoring the victims at 9:32 a.m. Friday, exactly one week after the shooting.

Along with observing the moment of silence, all Archdiocesan churches rang their bells 26 times, once for each victim. In addition, several Archdiocesan schools commemorated the victims, each in its own way.

At St. Rose of Lima School in Miami Shores, students prepared a spiritual bouquet of written prayers that will be sent to the St. Rose of Lima School in Newtown and third- to eighth-graders attended a prayer service at 10 a.m.

At Good Shepard, each class was given the biography of one of the victims; then as a group, the students crafted prayers for that victim.

The students' prayers were placed in a prayer jar, the inside of which is decorated with a figurine of Baby Jesus, a wreath, as well as silver and gold stars that represent the families and friends of the victims. Like the spiritual bouquet, the prayer jars will be sent to St. Rose of Lima School in Newtown.

Good Shepherd 8th grader Gabriella Morales has a hard time accepting the tragedy in Connecticut.

When my dad told me what happened I was really shocked. My heart really shattered into pieces because I had no idea someone could go into a school and do all those things," she told CBS4's Natalia Zea.

Good Shepherd 6th grader Nelson Molina was excited to do the prayer jar project to help his school heal. "I felt that it would bring this school together and the families in Connecticut closer to God," he says.

At Barry University, the bells of the school's Cor Jesu Chapel rang 26 times, once for each of the 26 shooting victims. Students and faculty at Everest University in Pompano Beach gathered outside the university buliding, where the names of each victim were displayed. Everest student Makesia Cunningham sang "Amazing Grace" and "His Eve Is On The Sparrow".

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