To the editor:

We visited Parkland, Florida just two weeks ago. It is a town that I know for its farmer’s markets, beautiful blue skies, laughter, love and it is my sister’s home. On Valentine’s Day it became the spot of the most recent school shooting, a horrific crime killing 17 people, hurting many others, and changing the lives of everyone in this town. One of the things that horrifies me most is that the killer, as an emotionally unstable 19 year old, was able to purchase an AR-15. He cannot even buy a beer.

It scares me that to many here, it has been dismissed as just another school shooting. Admittedly, I may have too, except for how directly this has affected so many people I love. I assure you that if a mass shooting can happen in Parkland, it can happen here in Barrington, and it could happen in your town too. I can’t watch this slip away from news headlines and become just another story.

I refuse to accept mass killings as a way of life for my children and this country. We can do better. The students in Parkland are brave, intelligent and demanding action. We should too. Please don’t send thoughts and prayers, please commit to taking action. 

Let’s rally around them as they work to make the changes that we adults have failed to accomplish.

#neveragain #parklandstrong #votecourage #throwthemout

Carrie Newton

Barrington