By Anastasha Echavarri
News Editor

Last friday, Adam Lanza walked into an elementary school in Newtown, CT and claimed twenty-six lives. Twenty of the lives were young children and the others were the teachers who tried to protect them.

Since Lanza shook this small suburban town and turned it upside down, the entire nation has been mourning the loss of the innocent and has taken a stand to show their sympathy and give their support.

Westford Academy seniors Tasneem Bhindarwala and Nalini Ramachandran have taken it upon themselves to set up a station at a table during lunch to allow students the opportunity to sign a poster and to write cards which will be sent to Newtown. Students of all grades are reaching out to the Newtown community to let them know that they are not alone.

“I think it is a great way for us to show our love and support. As students, this tragedy has definitely struck a chord with each and every one of us… these letters and cards, one, give the families comfort and solace, but I think it also helps us, as students here at WA, to feel that we too are doing something, [and that] we are helping in some fashion,” said Bhindarwala.

Although Westford is far away from the tragedy that took place in Sandy Hook, many students feel very vulnerable after the event that took place.

“The murder of school children and teachers make the Sandy Hook tragedy very relevant to my own day-to-day life, especially as a student myself living in a town so similar to Newtown,” said junior David Ran.

It is very hard to comprehend that young teachers such as twenty-seven year old Victoria Soto who was murdered in the attempt to save her students. It is even more difficult to comprehend that twenty young children died, especially for the parents who have to live without their children. Many students wrote cards for these parents and their mourning family members.

“I wrote the card because those families have unimaginable grief right now, and knowing that they have the support and thoughts of everyone around the country will hopefully do a little bit to make them feel a little better,” said junior Nithisha Prasad.

Although writing cards and making posters seem to be small acts of kindness, it is acts of kindness such as this that change the world for the better. The tragedy that took place was horrible, but it has allowed people to realize just how precious life can be.

“I’ve realized that you can’t take anything in life for granted. One day you may see your child get on the bus, and that may be the last time without you even knowing it. Because of this event, I really feel and see the need to continue to help others … it’s like something inside of you wakes up, and you see the world with such a different perspective,” said Bhindarwala.

After today the cards will be sent out to the Sandy Hook Support Fund, a fund which is collecting donations from all over the country.  These cards and posters will be mailed with the the hopes that they will arrive in time for the holidays.

“The student response has been amazing. Obviously a lot of people have been affected by the tragedy and it’s incredible to see the support that is pouring in from the WA community,” said Ramachandran.