Content Advisory: This article contains sensitive topics such as school violence, sexual assault, and suicide.
For many years, the family of a student from Ottawa who lost his life in a significant high school shooting has carefully preserved their memories of that distressing period, referring to it as a “memory box,” as described by one of the sisters.
Approaching the 50th anniversary of his tragic passing, the family of Mark Hough, who never reached his 19th birthday, will come together on the west side of Ottawa’s Rideau Canal to gather around a modest wooden bench they dedicated to him earlier this year.
The commemoration serves as a tribute to Hough’s life, according to his sister Lynne McArthur. Additionally, it serves as a poignant reminder that tragic events can unfold anywhere, even in a city like Ottawa.
On October 27, 1975, during a packed religion class at St. Pius X High School, Hough and several other students were shot by a troubled classmate who had earlier raped and murdered Kim Rabot, a girl from another school, at his residence. Despite the assailant taking his own life, all other victims of the classroom assault, one of Canada’s earliest school shootings, survived, except for Hough, who succumbed to his injuries over a month later, raising the day’s death toll to three.
“After learning about Mark’s passing, I deliberately avoided thinking about him as the pain was unbearable,” McArthur expressed.
Leading up to the upcoming anniversary, McArthur, her siblings, and a cousin who views Hough as his hero, have united with Hough’s St. Pius classmates and those who knew Rabot from Glebe Collegiate Institute to share their experiences with the CBC, exploring the enduring impact of the tragic events.
“The family believes it is time to move past the sorrow and tragedy of that day,” remarked McArthur.
