Dear Marieke Nijkamp,

On September 13, 2017, a shooter opened fire at Freeman High School in Rockford, Washington, killing one student and wounding three other students. On February 14, 2018, a gunman opened fire at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killing seventeen innocent students and staff members, and injuring seventeen others. On March 20, 2018, a student opened fire at Great Mills High School in Great Mills, Maryland, killing a female student, wounding a male student, and eventually shooting himself. On May 18, 2018, a school shooting took place at Santa Fe High School in Santa Fe, Texas, killing eight students and two teachers, and injuring thirteen others.

The innocent students and faculty at these schools will never be able to forget these shootings. We have come so far with gun laws, so why can anyone get their hands on a gun? As a student or teacher, these events can be stressful because something just like it could happen at my school on any day at any time. Before I read This Is Where It Ends, I had no idea what it was like to be at school at the time of a shooting. However, thanks to your down-to-earth, life-like writing, I have been able to visualize what it’s like to be a witness of one.

Your book made me realize the terrible stress every student and faculty member faces when they are all locked in a room, silent, trying to figure out whether or not they are dreaming. It made me realize the first thing that comes to their mind, their family, and what they wish they could tell them in case they didn’t survive; maybe even what they wish they could confess to a friend. It made me realize the fear they get when they want to move slightly without making a sound. It made me realize how much teachers would actually do for their students, how much they actually cared. Many of them jumping out in front of the students, taking the gunshot for them and sacrificing their life. Most importantly, it made me realize the strong sense of community each school has, the students praying for each other, taking gunshots for each other, or trying to revive each other. Even though they might’ve not known it, they all secretly loved each other deep down inside of their school community, just like a big family would.

If I hadn’t read this book, I would have a whole different perspective on school shootings. I know how stressful and scary they are to everyone now, which causes me to take the problem way more seriously. I know how every student reacts and feels as soon as they realize a shooter has entered the building. Most importantly, I know the pain the students feel when they realize that they lost someone they love, whether it’s a staff member or a student.

Ms. Nijkamp, what I want to say is thank you. Thank you for providing everyone with the knowledge of how stressful and terrifying school shootings are. Thank you for showing us what our teachers would do to keep us safe. And finally, thank you for showing the sense of family every school has.

Thank you,

Mary Kathryn Myers