Michael Brown was shot and killed one year ago by Police Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri. His death ignited riots, set off protests around the country and inspired the Black Lives Matter movement.

Brown graduated high school a few weeks before he died. He was eighteen years old. Eighteen is that delicious moment in life, a time of new beginnings. The promise of the future is bright. Brown's death hit his classmates especially hard. Normandy High School was a family, they say. The students called each other brothers and sisters. And when they lost Brown, it was like losing a member of that family.

The Huffington Post talked to several of Brown's classmates. Despite their grief, they have carried on. Some started college. One embarked on a career in home health care; another is studying graphic design. But all of them are forever scarred by how Brown died at the hands of the police. All of them say they believe it could have been their body left on the pavement for hours. They share their stories, reflecting on the past and looking to the future.