Last Friday’s mass shooting at a Connecticut elementary school could stir a lot of memories of past tragedies right here in Nebraska. On January 5, 2011, a student at Millard South High School shot and killed Assistant Principal Dr. Vicki Kaspar and injured Principal Curtis Case and a school nurse. On December 5, 2007, a 19 year old man walked in to the Von Maur store at Westroads Mall and opened fire on the third floor killing eight people and then turned the gun on himself. Dr. Pat Friman is the Vice President of Behavioral Health at Boys Town and says the recent tragedy is a good time for parents to reassure their children they are safe.
Dr. Friman says parents need to remind their children that events like the Connecticut shooting are rare and unusual events. He says most important thing a parent can do for their child now is to reassure them all is ok and they are safe inside their own home, at school and while in public.
Dr. Friman says parents also need to keep their cool and keep their own emotions in check around their kids as young ones can feed off their emotions.