Arrowhead Loses Freshman Natalie Kleemeier
On Friday, October 21, a call was received by a local fire department describing a fire. The fire was reported at 700 Mansfield Court, an apartment building that housed four families. A total of 15 different fire departments and nine different police stations responded to the fire. Inside, they found the bodies of six individuals, two adults and four kids, all with gunshot wounds.
The names of these individuals have been released, one being Natalie Kleemeier, a freshman at Arrowhead.
Natalie was 14 years old. According to an interview done by TMJ4, their father, Kyle Kleemeier, states that Natalie loved to make TikToks with her family and friends and cared deeply for those around her
It is noted she “always cared and looked out for everyone else” and was “so selfless” as specified by Emerson Lehmann of CBS 58 who interviewed a former friend of Natalie, Micheal Hetzel.
The fire displaced three extra families, some of which are in the Arrowhead School District. There are many places to donate to these families; one being donating things such as gift cards to the Hartland Village Hall. They are open from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.
North Shore Middle School is also accepting donations from the families of students who attend school there. Another one of the victims, and Natalie’s little sister, Sofina Kleemeier, attended North Shore.
GoFundMe’s have been set up, including one by Brittany Kleemeier, the cousin of the girl’s father, Kyle Kleemeier. Kleemeier hopes to raise money for their funerals. More information is located on this webpage.
Many students have gone to the prior vigils at Hartland – on the 21st, a “small group gathered in Nixon Park for a vigil (…) just 15 hours after first responders were contacted.” As reported by Sam Kraemer of Fox6 News.
Friday, October 21, there was a candlelight vigil at Nixon to honor the victims where community members gathered to pray over and remember the lives of those lost.
Some students from Arrowhead attended the vigil, including senior Chloe Maple who said “[I wanted] to show support to the families that had been affected.”
If students need someone to talk to, Arrowhead has specific counselors for students to reach out to. South campus counselors are Thomas Stuber from last names A to G, Barb Whyte from H to O, and Mrs. Sroka from P to Z. North campus counselors are Kelly Matthias from A to G, Todd Reineking from H to O, and Angela Rodenkirch from P to Z. Students schedule a meeting directly on the Arrowhead Webpage.
