Colorado Springs, Colo. – A license
plate approved by lawmakers to memorialize the Columbine High School
shooting victims and raise money to help survivors has become the
state’s most popular specialty plate, but no money has gone to victims.
Drivers have to pay $25 above the usual licensing fees to get the
specialty plates, which display an image of a columbine flower and the
words “Respect Life.” Columbine victims can benefit only if buyers make
a voluntary contribution to a special fund, which can distribute
proceeds to victims only after reaching a $25,000 threshold.
Since they were approved in 2001, the state has sold 87,035 plates,
raising $2.1 million for the state. But donations to the Columbine Fund
have hit about $11,000, not enough for it to begin benefiting victims,
said Rebecca Arno, spokeswoman for the Denver Foundation, which oversees
the fund.
She said many buyers apparently are unaware that the plate was approved
to benefit victims of the April 20, 1999, Columbine shootings, in which
two students killed 12 other students and a teacher before killing
themselves.
When the Legislature debated whether to offer the plates, many
lawmakers and others expressed concerns that the phrase “Respect Life”
would be interpreted as an anti-abortion slogan.
“There are a lot of reasons people have that plate that don’t have
anything to do with Columbine,” Arno said.
The Legislature rejected the plates in 2000, but proponents later
received administrative approval from the state Revenue Department.
Pauline Jones of Teller County said she bought the plates to convey her
“belief in choosing life over abortion,” but she said she also donated
$50 to the Columbine Fund.
“You shouldn’t be able to get the plates if you don’t give to the
fund,” Jones said.
Donna Taylor, whose son Mark survived several gunshot wounds, said her
son has received $50,000 from various fund-raising efforts. But she said
she was frustrated that people were obtaining “Respect Life” license
plates without contributing.
“From the beginning, (people) said they were going to help the families
with school and everything,” she said. “That never happened.” Denver
Foundation President David Miller said the organization might disburse
the Columbine Fund’s $11,000 next year, likely to victim-advocate
organizations, after contacting donors to offer a refund if they
disapprove.
“It is quite clear that the original vision for that fund is not going
to materialize,” he said.
