This Can Happen to You

Most people think a school shooting will never happen in their town. They believe it’s something that only happens in big cities or faraway places. But that’s not true. It can happen anywhere—a quiet town, a private school, a rural district. Guns don’t care about your zip code.

In my book, I wrote about a fictional event that could just as easily be real. A gun was found on a school bus. It could have been forgotten or hidden. Either way, it was real, and it could have ended in tragedy. That day shook me. It made me realize how close we really are to disaster, even when everything seems normal.

If we keep ignoring the problem, the odds of it happening again keep growing. Every year we do nothing, we pass the risk to the next child, the next teacher, the next family.

Everyone Reacts. No One Plans.

What usually happens after a school shooting?

• Schools review safety plans—for a few weeks.
• Police patrol more—for a few days.
• Politicians argue—for a few hours on the news.
• Then things go quiet—until the next time.

We don’t plan ahead. We wait until something bad happens and then we scramble to fix it. We react, not act. But prevention isn’t something you can figure out once it’s already too late.

Too Many People Are Passing the Buck

It’s easy to blame someone else. I’ve seen it over and over:

• Schools blame the police for slow response.
• Police blame the courts for weak laws.
• Lawmakers blame each other and argue about gun rights.
• Parents blame the school for not seeing the signs.
• The media blames video games or mental health.

And while everyone points fingers, children are the ones paying the price.

We All Need to Sit at the Same Table

Here’s what I believe: we will never solve this if everyone keeps standing on opposite sides. We need to sit at the same table—all of us. Not just in one town or one state, but across the whole country.

Who needs to be there?

• School leaders, who understand the daily risks
• Teachers, who know their students best
• Law enforcement, who protect the public
• Mental health professionals, who support kids in crisis
• Parents, who are the first line of defense
• Students, who hear what adults don’t
• Lawmakers, who can change the system

Everyone needs to talk. Everyone needs to listen. And most of all, everyone needs to act.

Robert F. Kennedy Said It Best

There’s a quote from Senator Robert F. Kennedy that guides how I think about this:

“Every time we turn our heads the other way when we see the law flouted,
when we tolerate what we know to be wrong,
when we close our eyes and ears to the corrupt because we are too busy or too frightened,
when we fail to speak up and speak out,
we strike a blow against freedom and decency and justice.”

This quote is not just about laws or politics. It’s about courage. It’s about doing what’s right—even when it’s uncomfortable or hard.

Every time we ignore the warning signs, stay silent, or say “that’s someone else’s job,” we strike a blow against our own children’s safety.

The Excuses Have to Stop

“I don’t have the budget.”
“My school hasn’t had any problems yet.”
“There’s nothing I can do.”
“It’s not my department.”
“This is just how the world is now.”

These are all excuses. And excuses won’t stop bullets.

We need people to take action—not later, not next year, but now.

What Real Action Looks Like

So what does real action look like?

• Schools doing regular safety drills that aren’t just checklists
• Parents having real conversations with their kids, even the hard ones
• Lawmakers putting safety over party politics
• Communities investing in mental health, not just fences and locks
• Students being taught how to speak up and stay alert

Action means doing things that are uncomfortable. But that’s what leadership really is.

Final Thoughts

I didn’t write Shooter in My School just to tell a story. I wrote it to show that this problem is real—and fixable. But only if we stop hiding, stop blaming, and start working as one.

No more sides. No more silence. No more passing the buck.

Let’s sit at the same table. Let’s make the calls. Let’s hold the meetings. Let’s write the policies that actually protect our children—not just for show, but for real.

Because the next shooting isn’t just possible. It’s coming—unless we do something now.

Together.