Sandy Hook Shooting Survivors Graduate High School, Remember 20 Classmates Lost in 2012 Massacre

Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting Survivors High School Graduates Remember 20 Classmates Lost in 2012 Massacre

By Jackelyn Cornejo , Parent Herald Jun 13, 10:50 am

Photo: (Photo : John Moore/Getty Images )

High school seniors Emma Ehrens and Grace Fischer will obtain their diplomas, marking the beginning of their future endeavors.

However, alongside their joy, they are preparing themselves emotionally to remember the 20 classmates from Sandy Hook Elementary School who would have graduated with them, had they not lost their lives in the 2012 slaughter.

Sandy Hook Shooting Survivors Remember 20 Classmates Lost in 2012 Massacre

Fischer expressed her sadness, reflecting on the absence of these children who should have shared this milestone. Ehrens, too, is grappling with a mix of feelings-happiness about leaving school, apprehension about the future, and profound thoughts about the alternate paths these lost friends might have taken.

The impact of gun violence, which has claimed the lives of so many young Americans since Newtown, hangs heavily over today's graduates and their communities.

Newtown High School's Class of 2024 will wear ribbons in remembrance, acknowledging their fortune to have survived that fateful day. Ehrens vividly remembers the terror of the shooting and the bravery of her friend Jesse Lewis, who saved lives before losing his own.

For both Emma and Grace, the massacre at Newtown continues to shape their lives. Grace, driven by a sense of duty and loss, plans to study law and justice at Hamilton College, determined to advocate for gun violence prevention.

Ehrens, inspired by her experiences, aims to pursue a career in law or politics, fueled by a profound survivor's guilt and a commitment to honor the memory of those who did not survive.

Their involvement with the Junior Newtown Action Alliance reflects their ongoing dedication to their cause, meeting with national leaders and supporting fellow survivors and victims' families across the country.

As they move forward, both young females carry the weight of disaster while attempting to make a difference in their community and beyond.

Sandy Hook Elementary School 2012 Shooting

On 14 December 2012, twenty students and six staff members, the youngest just six years old, were killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School firing.

A private ceremony took place on Wednesday evening at Newtown High School, attended by around 60 survivors. Graduating students expressed mixed emotions about reaching this milestone.

Emma Ehrens said, "The shooter came into my classroom. I watched my friends and teachers get killed and had to run for my life at six years old. Growing up with the fear and the 'what-ifs' of what could have happened if I stayed? I was going to be next."

Another survivor, Lilly Wasilnak, said, "You wait for this day your whole life, but we can't forget a whole chunk of our class is missing." Many survivors have joined gun control groups, and some met Vice-President Kamala Harris at the White House last week.

The shooting was carried out by a 20-year-old armed with two rifles and a handgun, who died from a self-inflicted gunshot as police arrived. Then-US President Barack Obama called it "the single darkest day of my presidency" and proposed new laws to curb gun violence.

Although he made reforms to the background check system via executive orders, two major legislative efforts, banning assault rifles and instituting background checks on most private gun sales, failed in Congress.

The Sandy Hook shooting remains bloody at a US primary school. Since then, there have been over 4,200 mass firings in the United States, including several dozen at schools.