A person places flowers at a makeshift memorial on the other side of Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Ore., on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026, a day after a deadly shooting. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)

BEND, Ore. - A special-needs teacher and student wounded in a deadly shooting at an Oregon elementary school remained hospitalized Saturday. But friends said their survival was a spot of hope in a community in mourning.

The youngest shooting survivor, 7-year-old Saylor Graham, is a feisty, vibrant fighter with a sweet nature whose story inspired other children, said Matt Sampson, executive director of Sparrow Clubs, where she was a member. She has a genetic disorder, usually uses a wheelchair and is non-verbal, but  she doesn't even need words to connect with people,  he said.


 She's just an amazing spirit who just immediately draws people to her and you just feel inspired by Saylor when you meet her,  Sampson said.  And she's always wearing these iconic glasses, whether they're pink or they're red. She's just such a cutie. 

Teacher Becky Drury, 54, is recovering in a Bend hospital with wounds to her arm and hand but hopes to go home soon, said Zack Hall, a family friend who is serving as her family's spokesperson.

Three children - ages 5, 8 and 11 - and a teacher were killed at the Silver Rail Elementary school in Bend, Oregon, Thursday when a former student there, 16-year-old Griffin J. John II, entered a special needs classroom and began firing with a shotgun.

One teacher was grappling with John for the weapon when the father of two students came in and shot him to death. They were credited with stopping the rampage and saving many people's lives.

While police continued to investigate John's motive, distraught parents, teachers and others gathered outside the school Saturday to leave flowers, pray and cry.

Savannah Patton, a mother who has a 1st and 4th grader at the school, sat on the grass Saturday across from a memorial of flowers, stuffed animals and balloons, and wiped tears from her eyes.

She told an Associated Press reporter that the teacher who died, Megan La
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