The parents of Colorado victim Claire Davis who was gunned down by a classmate said they forgive her killer, and asked others to do the same while at her memorial service.

On Dec. 13, Colorado senior, Claire Esther Davis, was shot in the head when student Karl Halverson Pierson, 18, entered their school at Arapahoe High armed with a shotgun, a machete, and three Molotov cocktails.

Pierson's target was the speech and debate teacher, Tracy Murphy, who had apparently kicked Pierson off of the speech and debate team.

Pierson entered the school looking for Murphy, and when he couldn't find him; he inexplicably shot Claire Davis and then killed himself.

The victim, Davis, suffered severe head trauma and fell into a coma, dying eight days after the attack.

Michael Davis told news reporters that Claire was gift to him and his wife, and they desperately wanted to hold on to that gift but it was time to return that gift to the giver.

"Last week was truly a paradox in that we lost our daughter, yet we witnessed the wonderful love that exists in the world through the tremendous outpouring of support we received," read a statement posted by the Davis family on the hospital's Facebook page.

The family said they felt "truly blessed" to have been Claire's parents.

At the service held to commemorate the teen's life. Mr. Davis, the girl's father, thanked everyone for coming and had much gratitude toward those that helped assist his daughter after the horrific attack.

"The young man that shot Claire had a name. His name was Karl Pierson. For reasons most of us, or all of us, will never know, Karl allowed himself to become filled with anger and rage and hatred," he said at the memorial. "That anger, rage and hatred blinded him. He blindly followed a path that led him to do something that no one should ever do. He took an innocent person's life. He took our daughter's life."

He continued, after fighting back tears, "My wife and I forgive Karl Pierson for what he did because he didn't know what he was doing. We would ask all of you here and all of your watching [on television] to search your hearts and also forgive Karl Pierson. He didn't know what he was doing."

"Karl's no longer with us. So it's no longer our responsibility to pass judgment," he added.

"We would like to ask you to join us and honor Claire by forever showing compassion, forgiveness, inducing whatever is within your power to reach out to those around you that might need the light of your love to help guide them to through the darkness," Davis said.