A quick thinking teacher hide her children in the bathroom while crazed gunman Adam Lanza shot through the classroom windows. She told them, ‘you’re going to have Christmas and Hanukkah.’ So heroic.
Elementary school teacher Kaitlin Roig‘s fast actions saved her first grade student’s lives. On Dec. 14, Adam Lanza arrived at the Sandy Hook school in Newtown, Conn. and killed 20 children and six adults, a number which may have been higher had Kaitlin not been so clever. She pushed her children into the bathroom and urged them to be quiet, and promised them they would all make it home to see their families for the holidays. Read on to hear Kaitlin talk about her heroic moment.
History of the Story
On Dec. 14, the quiet town of Newtown was rocked when 20-year-old Adam arrived at the Sandy Hook school and began shooting around 9.30a.m. Adam had killed his mother Nancy Lanza at their family home before he came to the school. Adam died at the scene, and his motives for the horrific crime are still unclear.
Kaitlin’s Actions
Kaitlin, 29, was teaching her class of first graders when she first heard the bullets, and she quickly ushered them into the bathroom for safety. She told ABC News:
“I put one of my students on top of the toilet. I was telling them, it’s going to be OK, you’re going to be all right. I told them to be absolutely quiet because I was just so afraid if he did come in he would hear us and start shooting the door. I said there are bad guys out there now. We need to wait for the good guys.”
She said in the face of the terrifying danger, the children were remarkably brave.
She said: “The kids were being so good. They asked, ‘Can we go see if anyone is out there? I just want Christmas, I don’t want to die, I just want to have Christmas.’ I said, ‘You’re going to have Christmas and Hanukkah.’ I tried to be positive. If they started crying I would take their face and say it’s going to be OK. One of my students was saying, ‘I know karate, so it’s OK.’”
How brave! When the shooting finally ended and the police arrived, Kaitlin was still on her guard:
“The police came and started knocking and obviously I was completely beside myself. I said, ‘I don’t believe you. You need to put your badges under the door.’ So they put their badges under the door.”
Other Hero Teachers
Vicki Soto was one heroic teacher who did not live to tell the tale, as she made the ultimate sacrifice when she threw herself in front of the children to save them from the killer’s bullets. Maryrose Kristopik is another quick thinking teacher who saved her children by pushing them into a closet. These teachers truly are remarkable, as they put the lives of the children ahead of their own.
What do YOU think HollyMoms? Is Kaitlin a hero?
– Christina Stiehl
More Sandy Hook massacre news:
- ‘The Voice’ Pays Tribute To Sandy Hook Shooting Victims
- Adam Lanza Had Condition That Inhibited Physical Pain — Report
- Newtown Shooting Tragedy: The First Two Victims Laid To Rest
Auna
Posted at 6:55 PM on February 3, 2013
What a wonderful woman. So brave. My heart goes out to her and everyone else.
I understand that you feel you need God at a time like this, but as it says, God helps those who help themselves. Perhaps increasing funding to mental health programs specifically in schools for training councilors, and providing help to families before kids like Adam Lanza grow up so disturbed would be useful. These children are all our responsibility and I would love to see kids getting the help they need WHEN they need it.