Survivor Stories

we would love to share your story if you were among the survivors of the 2015 planned parenthood mass shooting in colorado springs. your story will not be edited- it will be told exactly as you describe it. if you would like to remain anonymous, i will keep your identity confidential. 

Lindsey's Story

My name is Lindsey and I am a survivor of a mass shooting.  I worked as an advanced healthcare assistant at Planned Parenthood in Colorado Springs, Colorado during the horrific attack on November 27, 2015.  It was Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, and it was cold and snowing.  I had plans to leave early, as I had family in town visiting. The day started like any other--checking patients in, running insurance information, recording their vital signs. Late in the morning, I was in a room with a patient and heard loud bangs. At first, it sounded as if it was just an accident in the waiting room, something falling over and creating a loud noise. Then it became clear that this was everyone’s worst nightmare- there was an active shooter at the clinic.  

Our room was toward front of building where most shooting took place.  My patient and I hunkered down on the floor and sat against the door.  We were careful not to move so as not to be heard in case the shooter was near. We sat together for five hours but barely spoke, just occasionally squeezed hands. She was worried about the person who had accompanied her that day. All I could think about were the co-workers I knew scattered throughout the building. About three hours into the shooting, an armored vehicle rammed the building, breaking through the main entrance. It got really cold after that. I was wearing a T-shirt as the 17-degree air swept through the building. I was hypothermic when the police finally knocked on the door and signaled that everything was over.  

Chapter one of my story was a short five hours, compared to chapter two, which continues to this day . . . 

During the shooting, at no time did Planned Parenthood staff contact my family anticipating my early arrival home. The keys to my apartment were in my purse, still in the building. Had it not been for the family in town, I would have had nowhere to stay. I had no access to anything- my phone, keys, wallet, car- for five days. By the time I had retrieved these items, Planned Parenthood had still not reached out to my emergency contact.  Why did I provide an emergency contact? What was this, if not an emergency?  

I was told to not talk about the event with my co-workers, nor discuss the security in place prior to and during the shooting. I was forced to sign a document agreeing to not discuss the incident while employed by Planned Parenthood if I wanted to remain employed. I continued to work for Planned Parenthood for about three and a half months after the shooting.  

I returned to work at Planned Parenthood, the place where I'd experienced the most traumatic event of my life, five days a week. As the clinic was only partially open, construction was ongoing. Nail guns, hammers, and saws sound uncannily like gun shots to a survivor of a mass shooting.  

Then, one Friday, I walked into a typical all-staff meeting. However this time, there was a projector set up with a training video for dealing with an active shooter situation. We were forced to participate in an active shooter drill, with loud bangs mimicking gunshots. I was traumatized, just like I was that previous November.

I tried to return to the clinic, but was constantly told I was the only one who felt traumatized and the only one in the building still experiencing stress and anxiety. I left Planned Parenthood.

I filed a workman’s compensation claim (prior to leaving, Planned Parenthood told me this wasn’t important, and I believed them). The filing process is complex for a healthy person, let alone someone with injuries or psychological trauma. While my claim was being reviewed, the state of Colorado and the county of El Paso helped cover my medical expenses through a victims’ compensation fund. This is a great resource, and the people there were quite helpful, but the fund is not a replacement for workman’s compensation. The workman’s compensation process took 22 months from the date I applied. It was more than two years after the shooting that I was finally able to see a counselor and have medications paid for automatically.  

Since I left their employment, never has Planned Parenthood contacted me. No one from the organization has ever checked to see how I'm doing or asked if I need additional care. Planned Parenthood did the absolute bare minimum. I’ve been fighting for care, to be heard, and for this whole experience to never happen to anyone else again. And I continue to fight till this day.  I am a survivor of a mass shooting.

2016 Faith & Freedom Award

Dr. Boyd was given the 2016 Faith & Freedom Award as recognition for his service during the shooting on November 27, 2015. Below is the text of his acceptance speech. 

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It's not often that one gets an award for going to work. I don't feel like I did anything special.  Sadly, the current combination of hostile rhetoric, misinformation, and mental illness put many of us at risk by even this basic action.  And the reality is, I am simply a representative of the many staff members working that day in the Springs, and clinics providing abortion across the state and country, who provide women with comprehensive health services, knowing they may be the next potential target of terrorism.

Let us take a moment to remember those who died. Officer Swasey, Ke'Arre Stewart, Jennifer Markovsky, and those wounded. And let me thank all the responding officers, emergency personal, and bystanders who assisted that day.

November 27th, the day of the shooting, it was cold and snowy. I tend to arrive early to the clinic, but left extra early to make sure I had plenty of time due to the weather, as I live up here in Denver. Leaving early interrupted my morning routine, and as it turned out, not the best day to forget deodorant. Yes, even in recalling tragedy, we need to remember to laugh a little.

Due to the ongoing criminal case, I can't speak about the details of the shooting. Eventually those stories will be told and we will learn of the extraordinary actions of the staff that kept patients, visitors, and fellow staff members alive. Thankfully, everyone inside the building survived that day.

November 27th was an exceedingly long day. I finally arrived back home in Denver at nearly midnight, still in scrubs and savored a shower.  After taking some time off, a few days, I returned to work getting a new primary care office started. When I was finally able to return to work at the Stapleton Planned Parenthood clinic on December 26th, it felt good to be back with Planned Parenthood family.

Sadly, that was my last day working with Planned Parenthood. 

Concerns about safety started long before Nov 27th and, coincidentally, had been voiced just the Sunday before the shooting.  After the shooting, my further concerns about safety and concerns with the leadership at Planned Parenthood, I was removed from the schedule and Planned Parenthood ended my service with the organization on May 4th, 2016.

You don't become an abortion provider by accident as Dr. Parry mentioned in her introduction. While my work with Planned Parenthood was interrupted, my commitment to supporting women's access to safe reproductive health services is stronger than ever.  In the days, months, and years ahead, the full sorry of the events surrounding the shooting will be told. The information will both inspire us and disappoint us. Ultimately, it will leave us stronger and better prepared to face the challenges ahead.