Sarah Lerner is painfully familiar
with how teachers in Uvalde, Texas, with how teachers in Uvalde, Texas,
must have felt as a gunman attacked must have felt as a gunman attacked
their elementary school and fatally their elementary school and fatally
shot 21 people on May 24. In 2018, shot 21 people on May 24. In 2018,
Lerner kept 15 students safe in her Lerner kept 15 students safe in her
classroom at Marjory Stoneman classroom at Marjory Stoneman
Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.,
while a teenager armed with an AR-15-while a teenager armed with an AR-15-
style rifle shot and killed 17 people style rifle shot and killed 17 people
and wounded 17 others on campus.and wounded 17 others on campus.
“We get into education because “We get into education because
we love children, we love our subject we love children, we love our subject
matter, and we love teaching. None matter, and we love teaching. None
of us go into education to be human of us go into education to be human
shields, and to be bodyguards and shields, and to be bodyguards and
makeshift police officers,” says Lerner, makeshift police officers,” says Lerner,
who still teaches English at Marjory who still teaches English at Marjory
Stoneman Douglas. “But when those Stoneman Douglas. “But when those
kids are in your charge, no matter kids are in your charge, no matter
how old they are, even my 18-year-old how old they are, even my 18-year-old
seniors, you are responsible for them.”seniors, you are responsible for them.”The police waited more than an hour The police waited more than an hour
to enter the classrooms where the to enter the classrooms where the
gunman had barricaded himself and gunman had barricaded himself and
killed 19 children and two teachers. killed 19 children and two teachers.
“How do we continue to function “How do we continue to function
when kids are killed in an elementary when kids are killed in an elementary
school?” says Abbey Clements, a school?” says Abbey Clements, a
teacher who huddled with 17 second-teacher who huddled with 17 second-
grade students in her classroom on grade students in her classroom on
Dec. 14, 2012, when gunshots rang Dec. 14, 2012, when gunshots rang
out at Sandy Hook Elementary School out at Sandy Hook Elementary School
in Newtown, Conn. She recalls how in Newtown, Conn. She recalls how
she read a picture book about polar she read a picture book about polar
bears and tried to sing holiday songs bears and tried to sing holiday songs
to keep her students calm.to keep her students calm.
When she heard about the shooting When she heard about the shooting
in Uvalde, she thought immediately of in Uvalde, she thought immediately of
those educators and children, thrust those educators and children, thrust
into a similar situation a decade later.into a similar situation a decade later.
“Your mind goes right to that time, “Your mind goes right to that time,
and you think about those teachers and you think about those teachers
and those poor students,” she says. and those poor students,” she says.
“I’m so sorry for them that we did not “I’m so sorry for them that we did not
fix this.”fix this.”
In December, Clements, Lerner, and In December, Clements, Lerner, and
another teacher launched Teachers another teacher launched Teachers
Unify to End Gun Violence, aimed at Unify to End Gun Violence, aimed at
amplifying the stories of educators amplifying the stories of educators
who have survived school shootings who have survived school shootings
and advocating for solutions to stop and advocating for solutions to stop
gun violence across the country. Lerner gun violence across the country. Lerner
wants safe-gun- wants safe-gun- storage laws and strict storage laws and strict
background checks on purchases. She background checks on purchases. She
would also like to see age restrictions would also like to see age restrictions
that prevent those under 21 from that prevent those under 21 from
buying handguns, and laws that limit buying handguns, and laws that limit
access to military- access to military- style assault rifles style assault rifles
like the ones used by the gunmen in like the ones used by the gunmen in
Uvalde, Parkland, and Newtown.Uvalde, Parkland, and Newtown.
In the wake of the shooting at In the wake of the shooting at
Sandy Hook, Clements says she Sandy Hook, Clements says she
leaned on teachers who had survived leaned on teachers who had survived
the 1999 shooting at Columbine High the 1999 shooting at Columbine High
School, who could relate to the trauma School, who could relate to the trauma
she had experienced. She plans to she had experienced. She plans to
reach out to Uvalde teachers to offer reach out to Uvalde teachers to offer
similar support. But she’s frustrated similar support. But she’s frustrated
that the gesture is still necessary.that the gesture is still necessary.
“I mostly feel shame. I also feel “I mostly feel shame. I also feel
outrage,” says Clements, who now outrage,” says Clements, who now
teaches fourth grade at another teaches fourth grade at another
school in Newtown. “How pathetic is school in Newtown. “How pathetic is
this that we let this go on this long, this that we let this go on this long,
tragedy after tragedy?”tragedy after tragedy?”EDUCATION
TEACHERS WHO SURVIVED SCHOOL
SHOOTINGS FEEL ABANDONEDSHOOTINGS FEEL ABANDONED
By Katie ReillyBy Katie Reillythen her parents left the school and Lexi
returned to her classroom. It was the last
time they’d be together.
“My sweet Lexi. Love of my life.
Keeper of my soul. I carried you inside
me. I’m you. You are me. I want to be
with you,” Kimberly, Moreno’s grand-
daughter, wrote in a Facebook post on
May 25. “Now. Not later.”
Moreno was a pastor at the Primera
Iglesia Bautista for 50 years. Now he’s
preparing the sermon he’ll deliver at
Lexi’s funeral on June 11.
He tries hard not to cry in front of
people, especially his family. Not for
old-fashioned machismo’s sake, he
says, but to try to be a stable and help-
ful presence. His wife, Lexi’s great-
grandmother, is the same. “We have mo-
ments that we collapse, of course,” he
says. “But when I’m dealing with peo-
ple and their pain, I have to be strong
for them, because if I break down with
them, I don’t accomplish a whole lot.”
On the afternOOn of May 28, four
days after the shooting, Moreno sits
in the front pew of his church, a mod-
est building just three minutes’ drive
from Robb Elementary School, while
people work in the background to pre-
pare free lunches for the community.
Here, he seeks lessons from his faith.
“Every fiber of my human emotions, in
my mind, cries out to hate. To be angry,”
he says, looking at the pulpit in front of
him. “But then I remember that I have
preached a number of times the words
of Jesus. He said that we must learn to
love our enemies... This experience has
taught me to live those words.”
His decades as a pastor have also po-
sitioned him to listen and support his
granddaughter and her husband, who
he says are suffering immensely. He
believes they too will learn from this
agony, so that someday they and the
other grieving parents may guide oth-
ers through life’s darkest moments.
“I tell them that one of these days in
the future, you may be having a friend
or a couple come to you after having lost
a loved one,” Moreno says. “And you’re
going to be able to share, not something
you read in a book, not something that
you got from a counseling course. You’re
going to be sharing your pain, and how
you survived.” □
‘I’m so sorry for them
that we did not fix this.’
—ABBEY CLEMENTS, A TEACHER WHO
SURVIVED THE 2012 SHOOTING AT SURVIVED THE 2012 SHOOTING AT
SANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY SCHOOLSANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY SCHOOLAs efforts to pass comprehensive As efforts to pass comprehensive
gun-safety laws stall, many educators gun-safety laws stall, many educators
who survived mass shootings feel who survived mass shootings feel
as if they’ve been left to deal with the as if they’ve been left to deal with the
problem on their own, forced to protect problem on their own, forced to protect
students from the relentless threat of students from the relentless threat of
gun violence in schools.gun violence in schools.
In the wake of the shooting, Texas In the wake of the shooting, Texas
Governor Greg Abbott has indicated Governor Greg Abbott has indicated
he’s not willing to support stricter he’s not willing to support stricter
gun laws. Instead, he sent a letter to gun laws. Instead, he sent a letter to
the Texas education agency that puts the Texas education agency that puts
the onus on educators: instructing the onus on educators: instructing
districts to conduct weekly door districts to conduct weekly door
inspections, ordering administrators inspections, ordering administrators
to identify actions they can take to to identify actions they can take to
make campuses more secure before make campuses more secure before
the new school year, and encouraging the new school year, and encouraging
schools to increase the presence of schools to increase the presence of
law enforcement officers. law enforcement officers.
But police were inside Robb But police were inside Robb
Elementary minutes after the Uvalde Elementary minutes after the Uvalde
gunman entered the building, and their gunman entered the building, and their
response has drawn intense scrutiny. response has drawn intense scrutiny.