Parent Following CT Tragedy: "I'm Holding My Kids Closer"
By: Jordan Vandenberge
Updated: December 15, 2012
Every school day of every school year is a ritual. But the final bell
Friday afternoon at Harper Elementary School seemed different for James
Millsap.
"I head about it and I was immediately crushed," Millsap said of Friday's shooting in Connecticut. "I could not believe a human being would do something like that. Children are our future and for someone to do something like that, I just couldn't believe it."
"Children are among those killed."
That's the saddest string of syllables in the English language. The smallest of victims, more than a dozen of them, won't get to become policemen or firemen or parents themselves.
The news of Friday morning's mass shooting at a Connecticut elementary school spread quickly. Meanwhile, parents in Evansville anxiously waited.
"I feel like I have a rock in my chest," Millsap said.
"You can't explain why it happens," said Maria McClure. "It happens and you have to just pray for the victims and their families."
"If we can't protect our children, what kind of world are we living in?" another woman said. "It's just so bad."
"All I want to do now is, when they come out of school, give them an extra hug," Millsap said. "All it does is just make you want to spend as much time with your kids as possible, show you love them and care about them."
It's hard to find the words in tragedies like this. And maybe you don't need them.
Sometimes, a hug and a kiss says it all.
***
Following Friday's tragedy, the EVSC released the following statement.
"The Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation was saddened to hear of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut today. Our thoughts and prayers go out to that community. While any words at this time can sound cold and uncaring, the public should know that schools across the nation often participate in disaster prevention and training - as has the EVSC. A few years ago, the EVSC received a large National Incident Management System grant and used that funding to lead emergency management training for not only the EVSC - but for representatives from ALL private and parochial schools in the area. Over a long series of full and half-day sessions, school personnel learned about building safety and prevention techniques, as well as strategies to use if an incident does occur in a school."
"I head about it and I was immediately crushed," Millsap said of Friday's shooting in Connecticut. "I could not believe a human being would do something like that. Children are our future and for someone to do something like that, I just couldn't believe it."
"Children are among those killed."
That's the saddest string of syllables in the English language. The smallest of victims, more than a dozen of them, won't get to become policemen or firemen or parents themselves.
The news of Friday morning's mass shooting at a Connecticut elementary school spread quickly. Meanwhile, parents in Evansville anxiously waited.
"I feel like I have a rock in my chest," Millsap said.
"You can't explain why it happens," said Maria McClure. "It happens and you have to just pray for the victims and their families."
"If we can't protect our children, what kind of world are we living in?" another woman said. "It's just so bad."
"All I want to do now is, when they come out of school, give them an extra hug," Millsap said. "All it does is just make you want to spend as much time with your kids as possible, show you love them and care about them."
It's hard to find the words in tragedies like this. And maybe you don't need them.
Sometimes, a hug and a kiss says it all.
***
Following Friday's tragedy, the EVSC released the following statement.
"The Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation was saddened to hear of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut today. Our thoughts and prayers go out to that community. While any words at this time can sound cold and uncaring, the public should know that schools across the nation often participate in disaster prevention and training - as has the EVSC. A few years ago, the EVSC received a large National Incident Management System grant and used that funding to lead emergency management training for not only the EVSC - but for representatives from ALL private and parochial schools in the area. Over a long series of full and half-day sessions, school personnel learned about building safety and prevention techniques, as well as strategies to use if an incident does occur in a school."
