LETTER: More Than 300 Backpacks Delivered To Newtown From Tewksbury

To The Editor:

On Friday, Dec. 28, five cars loaded up and headed down to Sandy Hook Elementary.

Our backpacks were donated from all over Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine.  The volunteers at the Sandy Hook Healing Project were prepared for our arrival and could not have been more appreciative…  They genuinely were so excited about our delivery.

After unloading we visited the memorial sight in the tiny downtown area of Sandy Hook – within walking distance to the entrance of the school.  This idyllic New England town has been flipped upside down. All along the sidewalk, stacked 2+ feet deep and high were thousands of teddy bears, angels, candles, signs, cards, wreaths, poems, crosses and every other wonderful memento sent to the community from all over the world.  Everyone walked in a silent-single file to view these tributes, say a prayer and shed many tears.  A single tree,  bare of its leaves,  had hanging 26 large white crosses each with a name of those we lost, while attached to a post were 26 white roses – each with a hand painted face of those 26 angels.

Off to the left of the town center was a partially closed road, kept open only for pedestrians which lead to the entrance of the school’s driveway.   We walked up the road, as if we were being drawn by a higher power..  Once over the crest of the hill you immediately saw 26 Christmas trees lining the street - each adorned with a beautiful large white angel on top and tons of teddy bears, gifts and tributes laid out on the ground below. The huge carved wooden heart with a large crack down its center and the note:  “Our Hearts are Broken”  which so poignantly says it all.

Personally, I am honored and humbled to have been part of this project.  In all of this sadness, I am reminded again there is still so much good left in this world and it was evident throughout Newtown and Sandy Hook.  And we did make a difference..

Thank you to everyone who contributed and / or participated in any way, this could not have happened without you.

Suzanne Countie