Columbine anniversary brings pain and hope

LITTLETON, Colo. - The carpenter who last year erected wooden crosses for the 15 victims of the Columbine High School massacre returned to Colorado to restore the memorial as mourners prepared to mark the anniversary of the tragedy today.

Greg Zanis wanted ''to honor the families of the victims,'' his wife, Susan, said in an interview from their Aurora, Ill., home.

His truck carried 13 crosses this time, in deference to one victim's parents who had torn down the two crosses representing the two student gunmen. Both boys committed suicide after the rampage.

The April 20, 1999, massacre was the worst school shooting in U.S. history, and it affected thousands of people worldwide who watched on television as police circled the building and terrified students fled the school, including one seen dropping from a library window.

At nearby Clement Park, where the crosses were erected after the slayings, workers unloaded orange-and-white barricades Wednesday in anticipation of thousands of mourners at a public memorial service and a candlelight vigil planned today.

Elsewhere, victims' families organized memorial services to mark the day, and officials prepared for a statewide moment of silence.

The school itself remains off-limits to the public.

Many survivors, still coping with their grief, planned to stay away from the services and the Littleton area today.

Columbine's attendance has dropped this week, with 263 of 1,885 students absent Tuesday, said school district spokeswoman Marilyn Saltzman. Attendance was ''way down'' Wednesday but figures were not available by midafternoon.

''Most of the people I've talked to are trying to get as far away from this place as possible - the ones who were actually there,'' said Karen Nielsen, who was working in the cafeteria when the first shots rang out.

Kim Blair, a Columbine senior who saw her friend Anne Marie Hochhalter wounded, planned to spend the anniversary with her family in a hotel.

''Everybody I know is going up to the mountains or trying to get away for the day at least,'' Blair said. ''For some, it's an emotional thing. Last year was so horrifying that they just can't be anywhere near that place at that time.''

Still, officials expected a good number of students at the private assembly. Classes are canceled for the day, and attendance is not mandatory. Teddy bears sent in the wake of the shootings were to be set out for students to take if they want.

Gov. Bill Owens planned to lead a public service at the Capitol in downtown Denver, including a statewide moment of silence at 10:21 a.m., the time the attack began.

Darrell Scott, whose daughter Rachel was killed, was to lead a service at a nearby church that is expected to draw about 2,000 people, including victims' families. Other services were planned at nearby churches and the gravesides of some victims.

Nate Wooten, a freshman skateboarding during a break Wednesday, said there was little talk about the anniversary among Columbine students.

''They care, I know that,'' said his friend Brad Bootsma, a sophomore. ''I guess they're just trying to go on with their lives. I know I am.''