Mead School District offers counseling services after student killed in Valley shooting

The Mead School District community is grieving after a student was killed Saturday in a shooting in Spokane Valley.

Owar Opiew, a 16-year-old sophomore at Mead High School, died after he was shot around midnight on the 900 block of South Beige Road in what police suspect was a possibly gang-related event at a party, according to the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office. Opiew died at the scene, and no arrests have been made.

Anyone with information or video is encouraged to contact Crime Check at (509) 456-2233. Use reference No. 10015890.

In communication sent to students and family, the Mead School District offered information on how to access various support outlets in the wake of Opiew’s death.

This includes contacting school counselors via Student Services. Mead officials said students can check out of class at any time if they need support, while remote students can reach counselors directly by phone.

The district is also hosting dedicated Zoom calls Monday and Tuesday.

Families and students also were directed to external resources as needed, including the Spokane Regional Crisis Line.

“This is a very difficult situation for many students, staff and families,” said Todd Zeidler, the district’s public information officer, in a statement. “Out of respect for the family’s privacy and the students and staff that are grieving, we are focusing on supporting all those affected by this tragedy through our counseling services.”

A GoFundMe page created to support Opiew’s family collected more than $17,000 as of Monday afternoon.

Greg Mason can be reached at (509) 459-5047 or gregm@spokesman.com