Lee family says ‘thank you’

Scott Leamon / WSLS NewsChannel 10
Published: April 26, 2007

   Henry Lee's mother told her sons moving to Roanoke was "her dream."

   In coping with the nightmare that was Henry's death in the Virginia Tech tragedy, the Lee family says the Star City is reminding them a spring follows every winter.

   "After [the shootings] happened, our family noticed all the people [of Roanoke] are more supportive than we thought," said Henry's older brother Joe Lee.

   A caring friend delivered another arrangement to the Lee family home Thursday afternoon.

   The Kiwanis Club of Roanoke plans to name the same $1,000 scholarship Henry won last spring in his honor.

   Henry graduated second in his class at William Fleming High School.

   State police gave Henry's backpack and laptop computer to the family.  Henry had them with him when he was shot in Norris Hall.

   The family was not sure whose blood was on them.

   Henry has a brother and sister who are also Tech students.  His sister will graduate in with an accounting degree in May but finds it impossible to go back on campus due to her grief.

   The Lees hope to meet with a state police investigator Friday to find out more about how and where Henry died.

   They also hope to pinpoint his approximate time of death, saying it was very important to their grieving process.

   Henry's father also spoke for the first time to 10 On Your Side Thursday.

   He thanked not only the community but also the entire country for its overwhelming support.

   Henry, born in Vietnam, was the ninth of ten brothers and sisters.

   He is the first the Lee family lost.