John,
I was absolutely heartbroken to learn that two students – just 14 and 15 years old – were murdered, and at least three more injured, in a horrific shooting yesterday at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, California. My heart aches for their families and the entire community, yet another ripped apart by gun violence.
No child should ever have to barricade themselves in a classroom, trembling with fear that a shooter is just outside their door. No parent should ever get a text or call that their child is hiding from a gunman at school.
No family should ever get the news that mine did, and that two families in Santa Clarita did on Thursday – that their child is never coming home.
That's why we all need to send love to the families affected by the Santa Clarita shooting – and a promise that we will do everything we can to prevent future tragedies. We'll be sending them a card as soon as we can, so I hope you'll sign it right away.
My sweet little Daniel was murdered nearly seven years ago – and yesterday's shooting brought me right back to that terrible December day. But the laws of odds and averages don't make anyone immune to gun violence. I worry every single day that it could happen to my family again. It could happen to you.
So right now, we must turn our sadness and anger into action so that the precious lives lost to senseless gun violence weren't lost in vain – we must protect other children from gun violence in their honor.
Thank you for showing your support and your commitment to change today.
Mark Barden (Daniel's father)
