CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. – Nicholas Dworet was a star swimmer and had signed a scholarship letter of intent to swim for the University of Indianapolis when a shooter killed him and 16 others on Feb. 14, 2018, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. He was 17 when he died and would have celebrated his 22nd birthday last week.
On Tuesday morning, his father, Mitch Dworet, and his mother, Annika Dworet, returned to Broward Health Coral Springs, at 3000 Coral Hills Dr., where she used to work as a pediatric nurse, for a tribute.
Their son Alex, Nicholas’ brother, was among the 17 injured during the shooting. Shrapnel hit him and a bullet grazed his head. Broward Health took care of him. The grieving parents wore black for the ceremony.
“I think when tragedy happens, whenever that trauma, tragedy, happens to you, finding hope and faith is very difficult,” Mitch Dworet said.
Annika Dworet said this is why it’s important to “accept the love and kindness that other people and the community want to give you because you can’t do it alone.”
Vocalist Angelina Kennedy sang to comfort them. The highlight of the ceremony: Artist Stephen Canneto unveiled his “Spirit of Caring,” a public art piece with three human figures made out of brushed stainless steel. The figures hold up a heart that is made out of dichroic glass, which changes color.
“Today we come in unity as one to share love, to share compassion,” Coral Springs Mayor Scott J. Brook said during the ceremony.
Mitch Dworet and Annika Dworet had found storytelling cathartic before. Author Carla Albano published “Soul of a Swimmer” last year. It’s a biography of the champion who dreamed of competing in the Olympics. The book’s proceeds fund the Nicholas Dworet Memorial Trust to provide Swim4Nick scholarships.
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