John,
The moment I heard about the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting, I knew my wife Mary – the school psychologist – would be in the middle of it.
That's just the way she was.
That morning, I tried to call her, but there was no answer – so I drove to the school as fast as I could. We were told to wait at the firehouse, and I finally saw someone wearing a nametag who I recognized. When I introduced myself as Mary's husband, I could immediately tell by their reaction that Mary was involved.
Mary didn't think twice before running toward the sound of gunfire that day because she would do anything for her students – even if it meant putting herself in danger to save them. She gave her life to protect those children from gun violence, and that's why I've dedicated mine to saving more kids in her honor.
But we can't prevent the next tragedy unless we secure every dollar of this generous $100,000 match to expand our lifesaving work. I know these are challenging times, but our work remains critically important and we're still short of our goal, so I'm personally asking for your help: Will you please donate right now, before our match deadline on Friday, to double your impact and protect more children from gun violence?
Mary loved her job. It was what she always believed she was meant to do – her life's mission. Even the smallest successes with a child would lift her spirits, and I like to think that the work we're doing to protect children from gun violence is lifting her spirits once again.
Every single day without Mary is still hard – but we are doing everything we can to make her proud of us.
Thank you for helping me honor Mary by protecting kids like the ones she died protecting that terrible day.
Bill Sherlach
