Julianna Gehant

A memorial to Northern Illinois University shooting victim Julianna Gehant sits on the base of a flagpole in DeKalb, Ill., Friday, Feb. 15, 2008.

Associated Press

Three crosses bearing names of three of the five victims are posted on a hill on the campus of Northern Illinois University Friday, Feb. 15, 2008 in DeKalb, Ill. Left to right: Ryanne Mace, Julianna Gehant, Catalina Garcia.

Associated Press

Funeral service for Julianna Gehant with full military honors included a seven gun salute and the playing of taps at Holy Cross Cemetery Gehant was a victim of the Northern Illinois University shootings on Thursday February 14th. Salute is by 100th Division Army Engineers .

George LeClaire | Staff Photographer

Profiles of students

Nicole Berns
Jenna Broderick
Samantha Brunell
Dan Ciamprone
Patrick Korellis
Monique Caspillan and Lhee Santos
Desiree Smith
Kevin Sundstrom
Jillian Thomas
Lindsay Ullmann
Chris Werve

Profiles of victims

Gayle Dubowski
Catalina Garcia
Julianna Gehant
Ryanne Mace
Daniel Parmenter

"We won't have the chance to be old ladies"

By Kimberly Pohl | Daily Herald Staff

Julianna Gehant's relatives thought they could stop worrying when the U.S. Army sergeant first class returned home to the United States from serving in Bosnia, Thailand and Tonga. And yet, her home country is where a gunman took the 32-year-old's life.

A 12-year veteran of the Army and Army Reserves, Julianna had started down a new path. She was truly starting to recover from her fiance's fatal car crash in 2003 and committed herself to becoming a teacher. She was a first-year elementary education student at Northern Illinois University.

"We said 2008 was going to be a great year," said cousin Michelle Bastion. "We were both hoping to meet someone special. We planned on getting engaged, getting married, getting pregnant together."

On most weekends, Julianna made the short trip from her home in Mendota, about 45 miles southwest of DeKalb, to stay with Bastion in LaSalle. They studied together and did remodeling projects around the house - natural tasks for the soldier who helped build schools overseas. At night they'd hit the bars with a group of Bastion's friends who came to embrace Julianna over the months.

"We'd go out dancing and make our own fun," said Bastion. "It breaks my heart that we won't have the chance to be old ladies retelling crazy times to our grandchildren."

Julianna left active duty and joined the reserves in 2007. Bastion said her quiet, 5-foot-tall cousin considered becoming a drill sergeant but decided it wasn't the best fit.

"She couldn't picture herself telling a man to drop and give her 20," said Bastion. "Instead she liked the idea of making a difference in a child's life."

Julianna's death has been especially hard on her older sister, Jennifer, and parents Edward and Debra, according to Bastion. The Gehants are planning to set up a memorial room in their new house to display her uniform, beloved antique furniture, photographs and other souvenirs from her world travels.

The NIU Veterans Club honored their fallen soldier the day after the Valentine's Day shootings, laying a wreath at the Veteran's Memorial Flagpole. Weeks later a memorial gathering was held to remember Julie's accomplishments and she was recognized during a Veteran's Day ceremony in November. NIU's College of Education also founded the Julianna Gehant Scholarship.

Bastion's heart is heavy. Friday nights bring a palpable emptiness because Julianna isn't on her doorstep.

"I feel like I've lost not just a friend, but a sister," said Bastion. "Julie definitely left a mark on us all."


	Catalina Garcia stood out among her peers. She had the potential to be a great teacher, even a great leader. That's how her former high school teachers described her after learning she died in the shooting rampage. The shootings at Northern Illinois University hit especially hard at Dundee-Crown High School with the news that one of the victims was Ryanne Mace, a 2006 graduate, well-known for her love of music. After spending more than a decade in the Army, Julianna Gehant had set her sights on a new career: Teaching. In a Christmas card, the 32-year-old woman from Mendota, had written of plans to teach second graders. Dan Parmenter was seen by his Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity brothers as a gentle giant. At nearly 6-foot-5 and 250 pounds, the Westchester native was built to excel on the football and rugby fields. Sweet and quiet is how friends and former instructors at Glenbard North High School remembered Gayle Dubowski. But put her in a choir robe and on some risers, that's where she found her voice.