EDITOR:

My father grew up near KI Sawyer when he was a boy. During that time, the threat of nuclear war felt so real — so big — that schools would do drills on how to protect themselves if the airbase was ever hit by a nuclear weapon. He told me that even as a child, he knew he was close enough to the blast radius that he would die anyway. Thankfully, that threat never became a reality. Maybe some of you reading this remember that time — maybe you remember hiding under your desk and putting your hands over your head and wondering if that would really make any difference at all.

My daughter is 9 and has to do similar drills in school. Only, this time the threat is tangible and on-going. Whereas my father prepared for something that would likely never happen, my daughter and children all across America do preparedness drills for threats that happen multiple times a year. That feeling of dread — wondering if it makes any difference at all — is all too real for our children today.

This year alone, around 34,000 students were exposed to gun violence in their schools. If that number seems unrelatable to you, keep in mind that Delta County’s population hovers around 35,000 (as of the 2020 census). These events keep happening and they keep happening more frequently. Our children are dying. There is no way around that.

Our thoughts and prayers, while well intentioned, are not helping. Posts on Facebook aren’t helping. Senators and Congressmen arguing the finer points of gun laws and the need for mental health services are not helping. We, the adults of this nation, are screaming at one another about what needs to be done while doing nothing and our children are paying the price.

It is well past time to act. These atrocities are not our fault, but our inability to create lasting change is. We have stood here in shock, traumatized by what we are seeing, and have done nothing.

Talk to your teachers and principals. Ask them what they need and find a way to do it. Listen to your children, your grandchildren and family members when they express their fears about going to school and find ways to fix the issues they are facing. Realize that the person who has the polar opposite position on guns and mental health cares just as much as you do about safety — let go of your ideals and work together with them to find common ground that can help everyone. Use your talents and skills — whatever they are — to raise awareness and money for our schools to stay safe.

It’s time for us to step up and be the adults our children deserve.

Brianna Ecklid

Gladstone