Family loses 'acquired daughter' to Columbine shooting, 26 years later

WASHINGTON — Sue and Rick Townsend first met Anne Marie Hochhalter in March 2000 at a Bruce Springsteen benefit concert in Denver for Columbine High School shooting victims.

Hochhalter used a wheelchair after being left partially paralyzed by two gunshot wounds in the April 20, 1999, attack, when two students opened fire at the school, killing 13 and wounding 23 before taking their own lives.

The Townsends, whose 18-year-old daughter Lauren was killed in the shooting, introduced themselves to her at the event.

"We just saw her and went up and talked to her for a little bit," Rick told CNN. "She was very shy at the time."

That encounter would blossom into a lifelong bond.

After retiring in May 2000, Sue Townsend began taking Hochhalter to physical therapy appointments, and afterward, they would go shopping or to the movies and enjoy lunch and ice cream together.

Hochhalter — who had lost her mother to suicide six months after the Columbine massacre — began joining the Townsends for family dinners, holidays, vacations and birthdays.

"She became part of our family," said Sue Townsend, who was Lauren's stepmother.

The Townsends said they called for a welfare check on Hochhalter in February when she didn't respond to their texts or calls to confirm a weekend lunch date. That's when police found Hochhalter dead in her home in Westminster, Colorado.

The 43-year-old died on Feb. 16 from sepsis, with complications from her paralysis being a "significant contributing factor" in her death, according to an autopsy by the Jefferson County Coroner's Office.

"The manner of death is best classified as homicide," the autopsy report said. Hochhalter's death increased the Columbine shooting's death toll to 14.

The loss has brought yet another heartbreak for the Townsend family, stemming from the mass shooting that devastated this suburban Denver community 26 years ago.

Sue Townsend said that although she didn't see Hochhalter as a replacement for Lauren, their relationship helped her heal from the grief.

"She needed us, and we needed her, so it worked out," Sue Townsend said.

Hochhalter and Lauren Townsend did not know each other in high school. The family called Hochhalter their "acquired daughter," Sue Townsend said.

"We looked at her as a gift, kind of a bonus that came out of the tragedy of Columbine," Sue Townsend said. "We just enjoyed her."

'She refused to be seen as a victim'

Hochhalter suffered from chronic pain due to the gunshot wounds, Sue Townsend said.

She underwent various surgeries and endured complications from using a wheelchair and taking medications for most of her life.

Still, Hochhalter never allowed those challenges to stop her from living a full life, Sue Townsend said.

Hochhalter graduated from college, drove a car, worked as an assistant manager at Bath & Body Works, volunteered at a golden retriever rescue shelter because she loved dogs, and became an advocate for people with spinal cord injuries and chronic pain, Sue Townsend said.

Sue and Rick Townsend said Hochhalter accepted that she would likely never walk again and focused her energy on what her physical limitations would allow.

"She refused to be seen as a victim," Sue Townsend said. "She would say, 'I can do anything you can do, it just takes me longer.'"

Sue Townsend said Hochhalter's complications had started to worsen in the years leading up to her death.

She began expanding her online presence, connecting with people through social media groups who were suffering from similar health issues, Sue Townsend said.

Late last year, Hochhalter developed a pressure ulcer, a common skin complication for people who use wheelchairs, and was scheduled to have it treated the week she passed away. Sue Townsend said the pressure ulcer was what led to the sepsis.

"It was a shock," Sue Townsend said. "She had been through so much before, and we just assumed this would be taken care of as well. We just were stunned."

'Goodness wins'

The Townsends said Hochhalter's death, along with the media attention it received, has forced them to relive the Columbine tragedy.

It feels like "we lost our youngest twice," Rick Townsend said, given the couple's other children are all older than Hochhalter and Lauren.

But they find comfort in their memories of the two women.

They described Lauren as an "old soul" and "everybody's best friend," who was the valedictorian of her class at Columbine and dreamed of going to college to study wildlife biology.

She was also quirky, just like Hochhalter, Sue said. "They were just fun to be around."

The Townsends say they remain determined to keep Lauren's and Hochhalter's legacies alive.

They hope that sharing the story of their relationship with Hochhalter and her advocacy for people with chronic health issues will inspire others to form positive, caring connections.

"I hope this reminds people that goodness wins," Sue Townsend said.

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