Thursday marks the fifth anniversary of the Saugus High School shooting, when, on Nov. 14, 2019, students Gracie Muehlberger, 15, and Dominic Blackwell, 14, lost their lives.    That morning, a 16-year-old Saugus student opened fire on campus, shooting five of his fellow students and then himself. Three students were wounded and three others, including the shooter, died.   Before classes had begun, Detective Dan Finn of the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station was dropping off his girlfriend’s son at school when he noticed kids sprinting away from the campus. He thought there was a fight between two kids.   “That’s what kids do,” he said in an interview a year later, “they gravitate toward the fight.”   He watched as the kids split off in different directions. He asked one fleeing student what was going on.  “He said, ‘There was shots fired,’” Finn recalled.  Los Angeles County Sheriff Alexander Villanueva, left, gives an update at a press conference held at Central Park in Saugus regarding a shooting incident at Saugus High School on Thursday, November 14, 2019. Dan Watson/The Signal The off-duty detective, with no bulletproof vest or backup, ran onto campus where he found off-duty Officer Sean Yanez of the Inglewood Police Department. Both charged further into the school and found the fatally wounded Muehlberger and Blackwell, as well as the shooter.   Assistant Principal Marcus Garrett and Saugus teacher Jim Klipfel ran out to assist the students wounded by gunfire. It turned into a day the community would not forget.  Muehlberger is best remembered by loved ones as “energetic,” “caring,” “intelligent” and “full of life.”   “I think people that maybe only knew her lightly have gotten to know her better over the last year through the videos and postings that we’ve done to share more of her life,” said her dad, Bryan Muehlberger, in an October 2020 interview. “I think they’ve realized what kind of a special girl she was and the impact she’s had on their lives. I think it’s made them realize life is precious, and life is short, and to celebrate every single waking moment because you’re not guaranteed tomorrow.”  Gracie Muehlberger at the Melrose Avenue angel wings mural by artist Colette Miller. Courtesy photo Blackwell is best remembered by loved ones for his joy and energy with everyone he encountered.   “He lived 14 years, inspiring family and friends with his overwhelming kindness, infectious laughter and genuine excitement for life,” said his grandfather Gene Hall during a celebration of life ceremony for Blackwell in November 2020. “He gave the best of himself to everyone he knew.”   Dominic Blackwell. Courtesy photo Over the years, numerous people and groups would step up to help and support the victims and their families. Local storefronts, bumper stickers, T-shirts and tattoos showing off signs of “Saugus Strong” were everywhere. Even street signs around the Saugus High neighborhood showed off the school’s logo (the letter “S” wearing a Centurion helmet), compliments of the city of Santa Clarita’s Public Works Department.   The street sign at Centurion Way and Bouquet Canyon Road carries the #SaugusStrong insignia on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2019. Gilbert Bernal/The Signal The city and school district would remember and honor the victims of the shooting and their families. On the first-year anniversary, during the COVID-19 pandemic, they presented a special, virtual ceremony, dubbed “Unity of Community.” There’d be other anniversary memorials.  The Saugus High School class of 2023 was the last group of students on campus to have experienced the incident firsthand. This year’s seniors were in 7th grade at the time of the shooting.  In the years after, members of the community responded by gathering to push for gun reform. Some students spread the message during a particular school walkout in May 2022 following the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas. The following month, Saugus Students Demand Action hosted the Wear Orange Family Carnival at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Valencia to make their voices heard.   Mia Tretta, 17 , left, leads a chant for new gun laws as she joins other Saugus High School Students on the corner of Centurion Way and Bouquet Canyon Road in Saugus on Thursday, May 26, 2022. Dan Watson/The Signal Other students dealt with the tragedy in their own ways. In September 2022, Saugus High student Katie Rey released a song about coping with the shooting.   Rey was only a freshman at the time of the incident. According to previous reporting in The Signal, Rey’s journey of healing is what inspired her to write her song, “Peace.”    “I think these words need to be said,” she said. “People at Saugus, or people around the world that have experienced a shooting or gun violence in any area, just really need to hear the fact that they are safe and they’re going to be OK, even when things don’t feel OK.”   One year after the shooting, The Signal created a “Saugus Strong” web page that looks back at the shooting and the subsequent coverage. To view that page, visit signalscv.com/special-sections/saugus-strong.  Thousands gather at Central Park for the Saugus Strong Vigil on Nov. 17, 2019, just three days after a fatal shooting at Saugus High School. Signal file photo. The post 5 years later: Remembering the Saugus High shooting  appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.