Lacy Miller would have been proud of her mom Thursday.
The 2 Hearts Academy, part of the foundation Wendy Cohen started in honor of her slain daughter, held an open house and the first registration for its drop-out retrieval program.
"I think this would make Lacy really proud and happy," said Miller's childhood bestfriend, Katy Deckard. "If she were here, she'd want to be a part of it."
Classes at the 2 Hearts Academy, 3600 Mitchell Drive, which can house 25 to 30 students, will begin once there are enough students.
The school, located in a strip mall near Horsetooth and College, costs $5,000 a month just for rent. Cohen and her husband, Mark Cohen, are paying that out of pocket. The nearly $10,000 cost to renovate the building was largely donated.
In addition to a regular curriculum, students will be able to earn college credits and study for and take their GED test through Front Range Community College. The classes, taught by Cohen, will be free, and students can take up to 12 college credits for the cost of one.
As the open house progressed, handprints of Cohen's former students - Cohen worked with at-risk students in Poudre School District - began to dot a hall in the building.
"This is fabulous," said Josh Jensen after pressing his painted palm against the wall and leaving his name. "This is what Wendy does. She helps people out."
The program will give students a chance to finish their education and learn that education isn't a bad thing, and Cohen is the perfect person to do that, Jensen said.
"It's more than just the education," he said. "She helps you get through life."
Travis Turner, another of Cohen's former students, credited her with lighting a fire under him and getting him motivated, an ability of hers that will benefit other students.
"She finds what you're good at and pushes you toward that," he said. "She's perfect for helping people."
Cohen's strength and work since Miller's murder has been "amazing," Deckard said.
"She could have shut herself off and felt sorry for herself," she said. "But she turned it into an extremely positive thing."
But the day was bittersweet for Cohen. Miller had wanted to be a teacher, and Cohen said she launched the program to teach in her daughter's memory.
"It feels good," she said. "I'd rather be with Lacy, but if I can do something for her, it's good."
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