NORTH KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A deadly shooting Monday at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, is hitting close to home for parents and students in the Kansas City area.
According to authorities, the suspected shooter, 28-year-old Audrey Hale, entered the school and shot and killed three children and three adults.
Just seven months ago, there was a school shooting in St. Louis, Missouri, where a gunman killed two people and hurt many others.
Now, parents and church leaders in the Kansas City area are on high alert once again.
“An individual took weapons and shot and killed children in school where they should be safe,” said Tara Bennett, with Mom’s Demand Action. “I mentioned it to someone who was sitting with me, I said, ‘Oh, there’s been another school shooting today.' There wasn’t even a response. I think everyone’s numb to it at this point — it’s so common. We don’t have to live like this.”
Bennett has a son in school in the Northland and is pushing for responsible gun owner accountability.
“There hasn’t been a wake-up call," Bennett said.
But Bennett says she also has questions.
“Did they obtain them legally?" Bennett said. "Were they stored safely? Were there red flags? Were there signs they were going to be a danger to themselves or others? That’s really the big picture.”
Luke Johnston is the lead pastor at GlenHaven Church and also reflected on the Nashville school shooting.
“Sin never fails to surprise me,” he said. “It feels very close to home, particularly being a Presbyterian church.”
Johnston says he’s expanding his leadership by starting a new school this fall and security of his church’s campus is top of mind.
“We need to take it seriously for our kids, for our families,” Johnston said. “The number one question I’m asked right now by parents going through the enrollment process is — ‘How safe are you?’ I want to give confidence to parents that schools like ours, because of the horrible things that happened today, we will continue to take security seriously.”
He’s working out the protocol and is considering volunteer-trained security guards.
“What went through my mind is you’ve got to be a stickler about locking doors, leaving nothing open, I’m a big fan of armed trained security at schools,” he said. “After hearing the news today I’m not discouraged from starting a school.”
In the meantime, Bennett said she's working to implement Be Smart for Kids in her church.
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