On April 17, 2025, the Florida State University (FSU) community was shaken by a tragic mass shooting that left two individuals dead and six others injured. Among the victims were beloved campus figures — Robert Morales, a dining services manager and former coach, and Tiru Chabba, a father of two who operated a food stand near campus. The suspected shooter, a 20-year-old FSU student, was taken into custody and remains under investigation.
For high school students, college students, alumni, and families across Florida, especially those with ties to FSU, the emotional impact of this tragedy is profound. Whether processing fear, anger, grief, or numbness, it’s important to know that your reactions are valid — and you’re not alone.
As organizations committed to youth leadership and inclusive communities, the Ryan Nece Foundation and Community Tampa Bay stand in solidarity with those grieving. We’re also committed to helping young people navigate trauma with compassion, courage, and connection.
Creating Safe Virtual Spaces for Healing
In the aftermath of such violence, students need more than just information — they need spaces to feel heard and supported. That’s why we wanted to facilitate a virtual support session where students and alumni could:
- Reflect on their feelings in a safe, moderated space
- Connect with others who understand their experiences
- Learn practical tools for emotional regulation and healing
- Access mental health resources and crisis support
This was not a therapy session, but a session to build community care and remind each other that we’re stronger together.
Reflect and Process: A Space for You
As we navigate the emotional impact of this tragedy, it can help to pause and check in with ourselves. Below are a few questions to reflect on — privately, in a journal, or with someone you trust. There are no right or wrong answers. If you feel compelled to send in your thoughts, you can anonymously submit them in this reflection form.
🧠 Self-Check-In
- What emotions have been coming up for me since I heard the news?
- Where do I feel that in my body?
- What has helped me feel even a little bit calmer or safer?
❤️ Connections and Community
- Who or what has been a source of comfort or support lately?
- Is there someone I can reach out to — even just to sit in silence with?
🌱 Hope and Healing
- What’s one thing I can do today to care for myself — big or small?
- What gives me hope, even if it’s faint?
You don’t need to have it all figured out — simply noticing is enough.
Support Resources for Gun Violence Survivors
Whether or not you attend the session, help is always available. Here are trusted resources for crisis support, emotional healing, and advocacy:
🚨 Immediate Help
- Crisis Text Line — Text HOME to 741741 (24/7)
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline — Call or text 988
- Disaster Distress Helpline — Call or text 1-800-985-5990
- School counselors and local mental health clinics
- American Psychological Association
- Florida Psychological Association
- NAMI
- Student Mental Health – Ryan Nece Foundation
🧠 Trauma Recovery and Peer Support
- Everytown Survivor Network
- Brady Healing Justice Program
- Trauma Recovery Center Directory
- Jed Foundation
- March For Our Lives
More of What You Can Do Right Now:
- Talk to someone you trust — even if you don’t have the words yet.
- Turn off the news if you feel overwhelmed — protecting your peace is a form of strength.
- Join a healing circle or peer support space — being in community can help restore hope.
- Take one small action — journal, walk, create, advocate, breathe. It counts.
Reflection from Tammy Briant-Spratling, Community Tampa Bay and Honorary Nole
“The student union serves as the center of any college or university campus. Florida State University’s Student Union is no exception. It is a place of community, of campus energy, of nourishment of body and mind. It is a place for connection through programs, tabling, protesting, dining, and coffee study breaks. It is the heartbeat of any campus life and it is driven by the student affairs and food services professionals that have committed their careers to enriching the college lives of all students they serve.
It follows then that when this sacred space and those who occupy it are violently targeted, it is especially devastating. The violation is deeper, more acute. It strikes the core of the campus soul. Those who work in the building are the caretakers, the providers, the nourishers. With the reopening of the student union, they will return to work with an added role – the healers.
Outside of Doak Campbell Stadium stands one of the most important displays on all of campus – the Unconquered statue. The artist designed the imposing statue to capture the indomitable spirit of the Seminole people and those that have adopted that spirit as a symbol for their university. As the days and weeks move forward, the Unconquered spirit will live in each Seminole’s heart as they rejoin in community at their beloved Student Union.”
You’re Not Alone. You Matter.
To the students hurting right now: We see you.
To the alumni reliving their own campus trauma: We stand with you.
To the families, friends, and community members feeling helpless: Your care is part of the healing.
Tragedy may shake us, but it won’t divide us. At the Ryan Nece Foundation and Community Tampa Bay, we believe in the power of young people to lead, to love, and to heal — even in the face of violence.
