Michaela Wegner was a popular Broad Run sophomore in three honors classes. Harold Anthony Holt Jr., or Tony, was a 2004 Broad Run graduate who was planning on applying to ITT Technical Institute.
On Monday afternoon, both with mortal gunshot wounds were found on the rear deck of the Wegner family home on Iverson Drive in South Riding.
Wegner, 15, was pronounced dead at Fair Oaks Hospital. Holt, 19, died at Inova Fairfax Hospital.
Loudoun County Sheriff's Office investigators found a note from each teenager at the scene: the two were in love, they wrote, and despite their parents' disapproval, wanted to be together.
A preliminary investigation has yet to determine exactly how the scenario played out. The firearm found at the scene belonged to Holt's father, according to the Sheriff's Office.
FROM HER yearbook picture, Michaela Wegner smiled out, a pretty dark-haired girl who spoke often and easily in class, said school spokesman Wayde Byard. In his senior portrait, Tony Holt looked clean-cut and comfortable in a black bow tie and jacket.
"He wasn't a straight-A student," said Broad Run dean Dave Mininberg. "He was just a great kid."
Mininberg taught Holt in U.S. History and government during the teenager's junior and senior years at Broad Run. He remembers Holt as an quick study, always eager to connect current events to class discussion. The two became close enough that Holt would sometimes come in early and they'd talk guy stuff: cars, football.
"It sounds like a cliché," Mininberg said. "Everyone said, what a great kid — how could this happen to him?"
TUESDAY MORNING began in Broad Run classrooms with teachers reading a statement to students about the deaths. By the afternoon, more than 30 students had reported to the guidance office for counseling, Byard said.
"Most students knew about it last night," Byard said. "This is a close-knit community."
For Broad Run's class of 2007, Wegner is the second loss to death by shooting. In March, freshman Nick Shomaker died after being shot by Matthew Lathram, who later received a sentence of 25 years for involuntary manslaughter.
Michelle Fernandez has been a school psychologist with Broad Run since 1998. She said that while each case of a student death is different, the grieving process is often similar.
In this case, the lack of information about the pair's death created a certain type of response.
"They're asking a lot of 'why' questions," Fernandez said. "A lot of them are still in shock and disbelief, and still unsure what to think of the situation."
Close friends of Wegner and Holt who didn't come to school on Tuesday got phone calls from counselors, Byard said.
During a passing period between classes on Tuesday, it appeared life went on as normal. Students crowded the halls, shouting to be heard.
Sermon, Forum on Youth Violence
The Pleasant Valley United Methodist Church in Chantilly has planned as special sermon, "Choose Life!" and forum Sunday, Jan. 9, in response the shooting deaths of two Ashburn teenagers.
The sermon will deal with the problem of teen violence and be based on a text from Deuteronomy 30:19. At the close of the service, participants will be invited to sign a covenant promising to be supportive of youth and to do what is in their power prevent violence.
At 5:30 p.m. Sunday evening, parents and teens are invited to attend a forum, which will be moderated by the Rev. White and Bob Straub, a former school counselor. Teens and parents will have the opportunity to share perspectives and learn some of the warning signs associated with this behavior. Pleasant Valley UMC is located at 43987 John Mosby Highway in Chantilly. The community worships at 8:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. on Sunday mornings. The general public is invited to the worship services and the evening forum.