Remembering Maggie

EVENTS OF YEAR 2001

October 16, 2001

Maggie's Aunt Susan Speaks on "Telling Maggie's Story:  Exploding the Myths about Dating Violence" at K College.

How did Maggie become a victim of dating violence?  Susan, an attorney and writer who has advocated for many years on violence against women, offered her ideas about how to transform Maggie's death into a catalyst for the social andpolitical action needed to address the problem of violence in society.  For text of speech, click here.

This speech was part of "Moving Beyond Words, A Colloquium in Memory of Maggie," offered the week of Monday, October 15 to Friday, October 19th.  For a list of events, click here.

Susan also spoke about Maggie on Tuesday, October 9, at the 12th Annual Candlelight Vigil, "Remembering Victims of Domestic Violence" in Ansonia, Connecticut.

October 1, 2001

First Monday Event Held in Honor of Maggie, Victim of Gun Violence. 

"First Monday," a nationwide on-campus organizing project, held its program, "United to End Gun Violence" at  Monday event, was sponsored by Kalamazoo College and Million Mom March - SW Michigan Chapter, the program included a video, "Deadly Business" and a panel discussion.  Rick, Maggie's stepfather spoke on the panel.    

June 7, 2001

Maggie's Stepfather Speaks at

Conference in Connecticut

Maggie's stepfather, Rick, was among the presenters at the Sixth Annual Melanie Ilene Rieger Memorial Conference Against Violence held June 5 - 7 in Hartford, CT.  Melanie was a 19-year-old college student  who was murdered by her boyfriend on May 24, 1994.  Rick spoke on a Victims' Rights Panel entitled "Visions for a Non-Violent Future."  Other panelists included David Kaczynski, brother of Unabomber Ted Kaczynski; Marc Klaas, father of Polly Klaas, a 12-year-old girl who was kidnapped and murdered in 1993 and whose family has set up the Klaas Kids Foundation in her honor; Denise Brown, widow of Otha Brown of the Connecticut Lottery Commission who was the victim of workplace violence, and Dr. Sam Rieger, the father of Melanie and the current President of Survivors of Homicide in Connecticut.

May 13, 2001

Maggie's Family Speaks at Million Mom March in Kalamazoo for Mother's Day 2001

Maggie's stepfather, Rick, and her mother, Martha, spoke at the Million Mom March (MMM) rally in Kalamazoo.  Their plea as a victim's family was a strong one.  "As we look back on the happy years of raising our two children, it is very hard for us to accept or comprehend that we are a 'victim's family,' not simply Maggie's family," they began.  "And," they continued, "as a victim's family, we know that when a gun is fired, it doesn't matter how happy or how unsettled your life has been up to that point, or how good a person you may be.  All that matters is that gun and the violence it unleashes.  Its effect shatters lives and families." But the violence in our society is caused by more than the presence of guns, they cautioned.  "We must commit ourselves, as individuals and families, to effective action to reduce violent influences in our society, to promote appropriate treatment of angry, violent persons, and to fund efforts to reduce violence," they concluded.

Click here for a copy of their full remarks.

March - July, 2001

Maggie's Friends and Family Sign Petition

to Stop Michigan Concealed Weapons Law

Maggie's family and friends were among the 280,000 Michigan residents who circulated and signed petitions in a drive to stop Michigan's new Concealed Weapons law from going into effect on July 1st.  The petition drive was undertaken so that Michigan citizens could vote on a referendum in 2002 as to whether the law should take effect.  A Detroit Free Press editorial has called the law an "ill-conceived loosening of concealed weapons rules."  It has urged its readers to reject the law in the referendum.  If such a law was allowed to take effect, the number of gun permits is expected to grow in the state from 20,000 to 200,000!  To learn  more on the issue, click here. 

June 2001

Maggie's Story Included in Michigan Domestic Violence Prevention Report of Michigan's Lt. Governor

The final report of the Domestic Violence Homicide Prevention Task Force, chaired by Michigan's Lt. Gov. Dick Posthumus, included in its cover letter the following triubute to Maggie and her parents, Rick and Martha, who testified before the Task Force at its Kalamazoo public hearing. 

"Since being asked to chair the Domestic Violence Homicide Prevention Task Force, I have had the opportunity to meet and talk with residents from all over the state whose lives have been affected -- sometimes shattered-- by domestic violence.  Martha and Rick, the parents of Maggie, an intelligent, outgoing and beautiful woman, shared with me the tragedy of how Maggie, a Kalamazoo College student, was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend.  He then turned the gun on himself.  This story of a vibrant woman killed in the prime of her life as a result of domestic violence was, unfortunately, only one of several horrifying testimonials we heard as the task force held public hearings throughout the state.  All of the people we heard from spoke of their ordeals with eloquence and courage.  I am grateful to them for their generosity in sharing their private and painful experiences so that we may learn from them."

* Click here for a copy of the full report of the Task Force to the Michigan Governor and Legislature with key recommendations in the area of public education and awareness, victim protections and training for police and judges.

* Click here for the Detroit Free Press story about the report, "Stopping Domestic Abuse:  State Panel Seeks Better Laws."

February 13, 2001

Martha and Rick Testify before the Domestic Violence Homicide Prevention Task Force in Kalamazoo

In an impassioned plea for changes that would prevent others from dying as Maggie did, Rick and Martha, Maggie's stepfather and mother, testified before the Task Force in February.  "To lose a child to murder is to lose faith that the world is a safe, predictable and hopeful place," Rick told the Task Force.  "We come to you today out of love for our daughter."  "We're trying very, very hard not to be bitter," Martha said.  "Some good has to come out of Maggie's murder.  She was going to make a mark on this world."  Rick and Martha asked the Task Force to broaden its focus to encompass all violence against women and to recognize domestic violence starts in relationships as early as high school and college, not just among the married.  They also asked the Task Force to look at the ready availability of guns to desperate people, require serious action against those with guns on campus and address the mental health state of men who commit violence. 

To read the complete story of Rick's and Martha's testimony, "Family Appeals for an End to Domestic Violence," in the Kalamazoo Gazette, click here.

January, 2001

WMU, K-College Foster  "Men to Men" Program to Combat Violence Against Women in Maggie's Honor

Located down the street from Kalamazoo College where Maggie was killed by an angry male student in October, 1999, Western Michigan University (WMU) is working with K-College to raise the awareness of male students, particularly athletes, about violence against women in order to prevent it. 

To see story in PARADE, a national magazine, about men-to-men programs on campuses across the country, click here.