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Perry Hall High Students Receive Gift Of Love Mural

PERRY HALL, Md. (WJZ) -- A healing hand is headed to one Baltimore County high school marked by violence on the first day of class.

Gigi Barnett explains students will receive a gift of love in the form of a mural.

On the first day of school, police helicopters hovered over Perry Hall High School. SWAT teams stormed the campus and parents frantically searched for students. A student had brought a shotgun to school and opened fire in the cafeteria.

This is how the healing will begin.

"It's almost four months after the event. This comes at a time where we know we can continue that healing and move on," said Perry Hall Principal George Roberts.

This week, artists with the Baltimore Love Project in the city left their mark on campus. Their gift to students is a mural in the cafeteria, where the shooting occurred.

"It's really emotional, honestly, that whole day of school," said student Shannon Pfeiler. "We've made it into something positive now, so that's good."

Police arrested 15-year-old Robert Gladden and charged him as an adult in the shooting. Bullets critically injured 17-year-old special needs student Daniel Borowy. He just recently returned to school.

On the mural, Borowy's hand stands out.

"We are fortunate that he survived and came back," said Mary Kavanaugh.

Kavanaugh is the parent who asked the Love Project to visit Perry Hall. The mural is the only one of its kind at a Baltimore County school.

"This mural stands for love, for compassion, for diversity. It's not anti-anything," Kavanaugh said.

Sponsors donated $10,000 to pay for the supplies and t-shirts.

The Baltimore Love Project has 15 other murals around the city.

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