Teachers and first responders deserve our praise and prayers in dealing with horror

Sandy Hook teacher Kailin RaigSandy Hook teacher Kaitlin Raig recalls the situation at hand in an emotional interview with ABC News anchor Diane Sawyer, which is the main topic of Darlene Vann's blog installment.

EDGEWATER -- With so many images, statements, concerns and a visibly grieving president speaking to us, what struck me the most in the aftermath of the horrific massacre at the Sandy Hook elementary school was ABC anchor Diane Sawyer’s interview with one of the teachers who lived through this tragedy.

She was a young blonde woman looking no more than 30, if that, who recalled what she did when the shots rang out.

Teacher Kaitlin Raig knew she had to protect her kids so she managed to get every one of them into the bathroom including herself. Before she closed the door she pulled a heavy piece of furniture in front of the door. The children were told they needed to be very quiet.

If they started to cry, Raig would take their face in her hands and tell them they were going to be all right. She was sure they were all going to die so she told each and every one of them that she loved them and they were special so that the last thing they heard would not be gunshots but that they were loved.

When the police arrived, Raig made them slide their shields under the door. Even that was not enough to convince her they were not the bad guys so she said, “If you are the police you either have found the key to open this door or will go find it because I am not opening it”.

The officer then proceeded to use the key and let them out. Then they had to lead the children out past the blood and bodies so they were told to close their eyes, which they did. They were spared at least the awful sight of their principal in a pool of blood while the poor teachers saw everything, but the sounds will be with them all forever.

The officer then proceeded to use the key and let them out. Then they had to lead the children out past the blood and bodies so they were told to close their eyes, which they did. They were spared at least the awful sight of their principal in a pool of blood while the poor teachers saw everything, but the sounds will be with them all forever.

The dedication and bravery of that teacher is just one of many stories from this tragedy.

Most people do not become teachers for the money, but because they love children and they enjoy teaching. It’s a good thing because we don’t pay them nearly what they are worth. During this tragedy among elementary school children, those teachers did everything they could to protect their charges. At Columbine, teachers gave their lives to save students.

There are not big enough words to express the gratitude of this nation to all teachers.

Also, let us not forget the first responders who keep their cool when faced with the impossible like someone killing 20 children. They won’t sleep for weeks without those images of 20 little bodies in their heads, but they did their jobs quietly and calmly and made sure no more were killed and there were no more gunmen.

Thank God there are people who want to do those jobs. They don’t do them just for pay either. They feel an obligation to help people and do so every day in small and some days very big ways.

We also owe them for what they did today and for what they do everyday. If your loved one is a teacher or first responder of any kind, hug them tight and thank them from all of us who can’t do it in person.

The tragic events of the shooting in Newtown, Conn., have been swirling in my mind as I am sure they are in most Americans.

My mind went to a different place today as well. I was thinking how awful it was for the brother of the shooter to first be accused as the shooter then he and his Father were pulled into the police station and questioned for most of the day.

My mind went to a different place today as well. I was thinking how awful it was for the brother of the shooter to first be accused as the shooter then he and his Father were pulled into the police station and questioned for most of the day.

These poor men, one who lost his brother and mother, one who lost his son, and both who had to process that their loved one did this horrible thing were also then subjected to suspicion and mountains of questions they couldn’t really answer.

The main thing the police and the world wanted them to tell was what was that young man thinking. No one has that answer but the shooter himself and he's dead.

We can speculate until doomsday, which for 26 families was yesterday, but we cannot ever know what that boy was feeling or thinking or what prompted him to carry out such a heinous crime.

Some people would say that the Lanza family does not deserve sympathy but they would be wrong. Can you even imagine how you would cope with such a thing?

It is not the same as the deaths of those innocent people but it is a loss nonetheless to that family and they need our prayers for healing, too. They should not be condemned because of what 20-year-old Adam Lanza did.

However, you know as well as I that many will do so unfairly. How do these people go on having to live with the knowledge of what transpired at the hands of a member of their family on a sunny day two weeks before Christmas? Their lives will never be the same, either.

I ask you to please include them in your prayers. They are God’s children, too.

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