Story highlights Amid the memories of the shooting in Newtown, signs of hope have emerged

Neighbor who helped six children: "This experience has made me spiritual"

Mother of slain girl: "We have so many angels and ... bright stars shining all over us"

Pastor's lesson from Columbine: "You will see God's hand was in this, but you can't see it now"

Grace McDonnell would write messages for her mother in the bathroom window.

On the first day without Grace, the bathroom fogged up and mom glanced at the window. And right there was a message from beyond the grave.

The little girl had drawn the peace sign, her favorite symbol. Above it was a heart with the words: "Grace, Mom."

"She was all about peace and gentleness and kindness," said Lynn McDonnell.

Amazing, Grace. A girl who lived by the family's mottos: "Live for the moment" and "Soak it in."

The McDonnells are now part of a community bound together by the tragedy of what transpired at a Connecticut elementary school, joined by a nation that has grieved with them.

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Yet amid the memories of that awful day in Newtown, signs of hope have emerged.

Gene Rosen won't forget his connection. It's touched his soul and made him believe more in God and angels again.

Rosen went out back to feed two of his cats shortly after 9:15 a.m. on December 14. His home sits on an acre of land on Riverside Road, with his backyard on a hill overlooking Sandy Hook Elementary.

That day, he heard staccato gunfire -- Boom! Boom! Boom! -- coming from the vicinity of the school. The retired psychologist convinced himself it was fireworks.

Andrei Nikitchyuk was working in his home office that morning. He received a robocall from the school that it was in lockdown. He didn't think much of it -- the school recently had two lockdowns for false alarms: a suspicious car and bank robbery.

Inside the school, his son, Bear, walked down the hall with a friend toward the main office. Gunshots whizzed by.

Teacher Janet Vollmer huddled with her children away from doors and windows. Someone turned on the intercom system. The sound of gunfire and a woman crying was piped into every classroom.

Vollmer told her kids she loved them and began reading out loud.

A loss of innocence

It shattered a town and brought a president to tears. Twenty children -- all aged 6 and 7 -- were gunned down in the safest place they had ever known, their home away from home. Six educators died, too, hailed as heroes.

Never had an act of violence seemed so heinous, so horrifying in America. An attack on pure innocence at a school that symbolized peace and love.

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Since then, residents of Newtown have been dealing with the arc of life in unimaginable ways -- of death and loss, of pain and suffering, of shock and horror, of beginning to heal.

Couples who settled here years ago had grown close to one another through their children and their schools. Teens in middle school had babysat the first-graders slain at Sandy Hook. Some teens had played on sports teams with siblings of the slain children; others attended dance class with sisters of girls killed at the school. College students, home for the holiday, saw the school they loved desecrated.

"I can't even tell you how hard it is for these kids," said Lillian Bittman, former chairwoman of the Newtown Board of Education. "A lot of these kids have been here their whole lives. That's why these connections are so strong.

"They've lost their childhood."

Newtown's Pastor Rocky Veach had been a preacher in Littleton, Colorado, when the Columbine shooting occurred. He said the biggest lesson he learned from the 1999 massacre was "that a lot of things are going to pan out over the next months here, even years, and you will see God's hand was in this, but you can't see it now."

Maybe it's too soon, too difficult to imagine another reality further in the future. Right now, residents can only think of the town they once knew and how everything changed that Friday.

For most, the pain is just too fresh, the attack too senseless to comprehend.

In the wake of the massacre, Americans have begun looking at gun control and mental health issues. It's also forced our society to take a deep introspective look: Have we become too polarized? What can we learn from those children?

Is there meaning to be drawn from Grace's message on that window?

Journey into hell

Gene Rosen had blocked out the sounds of whatever he heard coming from the school. How obnoxious, he thought, that somebody would shoot off fireworks so early in the day.

Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Candles burn next to a lighted tree at a makeshift shrine in Newtown, Connecticut, commemorating the victims of the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012. Hide Caption 1 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Erica Simmons rings the campus bell at Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia, during a nationwide commemoration December 21, marking a week since the Newtown, Connecticut, mass shooting. Church bells rang out across the country at 9:30 ET Friday to remember those who died in the gun rampage. Hide Caption 2 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A woman pauses at a streetside memorial during a moment of silence on December 21 in Newtown. Hide Caption 3 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Connecticut State Police block the road to Sandy Hook Elementary School during a moment of silence on December 21. A week ago, a gunman forced his way into the school and shot and killed 26 people, including 20 children. Hide Caption 4 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A woman bows her head in Newtown's Sandy Hook village on December 21. Hide Caption 5 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People observe a moment of silence for the school shooting victims at the Blue Colony Diner in Newtown on December 21. Hide Caption 6 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Children in Newtown, excluding Sandy Hook Elementary, return to classes on Tuesday, December 18, four days after the shooting at the elementary school. Hide Caption 7 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – U.S. Rep. David Cicilline, D-Rhode Island, holds a news conference with the Brady Campaign to discuss gun violence. In attendance with the Brady Campaign were several survivors of gun violence and family members of victims of gun violence. Hide Caption 8 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Members of the human rights group Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption light candles showing the names of those killed during the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, during a prayer vigil in front of the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines on December 18. Hide Caption 9 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Children light candles to pay their respects to the victims of the Newtown, Connecticut, shooting at the main square in Tirana, Albania, on Monday, December 17. The deadly gun rampage at Sandy Hook Elementary School has provoked strong reactions from around the world. Hide Caption 10 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Protesters march on the National Rifle Association's Capitol Hill lobbyist offices in Washington on December 17. Hide Caption 11 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks out for stronger gun control at a press conference at City Hall on December 17. Bloomberg, co-chair of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, was joined by victims and survivors of gun violence. Hide Caption 12 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Chris Foye, whose son Chris Owens was killed by a stray bullet in 2009, stands with other survivors and family members of gun violence at Bloomberg's press conference on December 17 in New York. Hide Caption 13 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People pay their respects on December 17 at a makeshift shrine in Newtown to the victims of Friday's elementary school shooting. Funerals began Monday in the Connecticut town. Hide Caption 14 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange hold a moment of silence on December 17 in honor of the shooting victims. Hide Caption 15 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Young people mourn at Newtown High School before a memorial service attended by President Obama on Sunday, December 16. Hide Caption 16 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – President Barack Obama waits to speak at an interfaith vigil for the shooting victims from Sandy Hook Elementary School December 16 at Newtown High School. Hide Caption 17 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Mourners comfort one another December 16 before U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at an interfaith vigil for the shooting victims. Hide Caption 18 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Two women embrace before the interfaith vigil at Newtown High School on Sunday evening. Hide Caption 19 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – From left: Newtown residents Claire Swanson, Kate Suba, Jaden Albrecht, Simran Chand and New London, Connecticut, residents Rachel Pullen and her son, Landon DeCecco, hold candles at a memorial for victims on Sunday, December 16, in Newtown, Connecticut. Hide Caption 20 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A young boy walks past Christmas trees set up at a makeshift shrine to the shooting victims in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 16. Hide Caption 21 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Ty Diaz is kissed by his mother, Yvette, at a memorial down the street from Sandy Hook on December 16. Hide Caption 22 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Teddy bears, flowers and candles in memory of those killed are left at a memorial down the street from the school on December 16. Hide Caption 23 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Two teenagers embrace at a makeshift shrine to the victims in Newtown on December 16. Hide Caption 24 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Nuns pay their respects at a makeshift shrine to the victims on December 16. Hide Caption 25 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Members of Sisters of Christian Charity go to lay flowers in front of the Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 16 in Newtown. Hide Caption 26 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A woman receives a hug as she leaves morning service December 16 at Trinity Church in Newtown near the elementary school. Hide Caption 27 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Parishioners pay their respects to the victims of the elementary school shooting while attending Mass at St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church in Newtown on December 16. Hide Caption 28 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Police officers honor the victims of the school shooting at the St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church on December 16 in Newtown. Hide Caption 29 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – The Jacksonville Jaguars have a moment of silence in honor of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims before their game against the Miami Dolphins on December 16. Hide Caption 30 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A parishioner kneels in front of a makeshift memorial at St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church in Newtown on December 16. Hide Caption 31 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A police officer removes flowers from a busy intersection on December 16 in Newtown. Police said they were afraid the memorial, left for the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, would cause a traffic hazard. Hide Caption 32 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A woman hugs her daughter on the steps of Trinity Church on December 16 in Newtown. Hide Caption 33 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Angel wood cutouts for each of the 27 victims are set up on hillside in Newtown on December 16. Hide Caption 34 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People in Bangalore, India, hold cards and photographs of the slain at a candlelight vigil outside a Catholic church on December 16. Hide Caption 35 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – J.J. Watt of the Houston Texans shows his glove in remembrance of the victims before the start of a game against the Indianapolis Colts on December 16 in Houston. Hide Caption 36 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Donna Soto, right, mother of Victoria Soto, the first-grade teacher at Sandy Hook Elementary School who was shot and killed while protecting her students, hugs her daughter Karly while mourning their loss at a candlelight memorial at Stratford High School on Saturday, December 15, in Stratford, Connecticut. Hide Caption 37 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Firefighters kneel to pay their respects at a makeshift memorial near the school in Newtown on Saturday. Hide Caption 38 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A child lights a candle at a memorial filled with flowers, stuffed toys and candles outside of Saint Rose of Lima Church near Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut on Saturday. Hide Caption 39 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Candles light up a memorial outside of Saint Rose of Lima Church in Newtown. Hide Caption 40 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Lucas, Kelly and Michael DaSilva pray and embrace at a makeshift memorial near the school in Newtown. Hide Caption 41 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People are overcome with emotion Saturday at a makeshift memorial near Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown. Hide Caption 42 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Residents arrive Saturday to pay tribute to the victims of an elementary school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. Hide Caption 43 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A couple carry balloons to place at a curbside shrine to in Newtown on Saturday. Hide Caption 44 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A mother and daughter attend a prayer service at St. John's Episcopal Church in Newtown on Saturday. Hide Caption 45 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Flowers and signs of sympathy adorn the street leading to Sandy Hook Elementary School. Hide Caption 46 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Claudia Urbiana and daughter Jocelyne Cardenas, left, hug outside of the entrance to the Sandy Hook school. Hide Caption 47 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A makeshift memorial with flowers, stuffed toys and candles sit outside Saint Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church in Newtown, Connecticut, on Saturday. Hide Caption 48 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A man bows his head as he stands at a makeshift memorial, outside Saint Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church in Newtown on Saturday, December 15. Hide Caption 49 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – New Jersey resident Steve Wruble, who was moved to drive out to Connecticut to support local residents, grieves for victims at the entrance to Sandy Hook village in Newtown on Saturday. Hide Caption 50 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People attend a prayer service in Newtown on Saturday to reflect. Hide Caption 51 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A mother hugs her children after paying tribute to the victims in Newtown on Saturday, December 15. Hide Caption 52 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Newtown High School student Trevor Lopez stands outside of a church where residents have come to pray and reflect on Saturday Hide Caption 53 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Andrea Jaeger places flowers and a candle at a makeshift memorial outside a firehouse near Sandy Hook Elementary School on Saturday. Hide Caption 54 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – The U.S. flag flies at half-staff above the White House on Saturday. Hide Caption 55 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Ken Kowalsky and his daughter Rebecca, 13, embrace while standing at the end of the road leading to Sandy Hook Elementary School on Saturday. Hide Caption 56 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A woman puts a flower near crosses planted by Rio de Paz (Rio of Peace), in memory of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday. Hide Caption 57 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A woman sits during a service at the Asylum Hill Congregational Church in Hartford, Connecticut on Friday, December 14. Hide Caption 58 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Fans at the NBA game between the Utah Jazz and the Phoenix Suns participate in a moment of silence for the victims of the Newtown shooting on Friday in Phoenix. Hide Caption 59 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – An overflow crowd listens to a church service held at the St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Newtown on December 14. Hide Caption 60 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People gather for a prayer vigil at St. Rose Church on Friday. Hide Caption 61 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People gather for a vigil outside the White House in Washington following the Connecticut elementary school shooting on Friday. Hide Caption 62 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Candles burn as people gather for a vigil outside the White House. Hide Caption 63 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Hartford, Connecticut, Mayor Padro Segarra speaks emotionally about the students and teachers who died earlier in the day at Sandy Hook Elementary School in nearby Newtown at a candlelight vigil at Bushnell Park in Hartford on Friday. Hide Caption 64 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Cynthia Alvarez is comforted by her mother, Lilia, as people gather for a prayer vigil at St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church in Newtown. Hide Caption 65 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People gather for a prayer vigil at St. Rose Church in Newtown. Hide Caption 66 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People gather for a prayer vigil at St. Rose Church. Hide Caption 67 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People gather inside the St. Rose Church to remember the shooting victims on Friday Hide Caption 68 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A woman bows her head during a vigil for the shooting victims at St. Rose Church. Hide Caption 69 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People gather in the St. Rose Church for a memorial service Friday. Hide Caption 70 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Women comfort each other during the vigil at St. Rose Church. Hide Caption 71 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A woman looks on during the vigil at St. Rose Church. Hide Caption 72 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People hug outside of the Newtown United Methodist Church on Friday, near the site of the shootings at the Sandy Hook school. Hide Caption 73 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – A flag at the U.S. Capitol flies at half-staff after President Barack Obama ordered the action while speaking from the White House. Obama called for "meaningful action" in the wake of the school shooting. Hide Caption 74 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Julie Henson of San Francisco joins other people outside the White House to participate in a candlelight vigil on Friday. Hide Caption 75 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Obama wipes tears as he makes a statement in response to the shooting on Friday. Hide Caption 76 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Washington resident Rachel Perrone, left, and her 5-year-old son, Joe, center, join others outside the White House in a candlelight vigil. Hide Caption 77 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Faisal Ali, right, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, joins the vigil outside the White House. Hide Caption 78 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – People gather outside the White House to participate in a candlelight vigil. Hide Caption 79 of 80 Photos: Reaction to Newtown school killings Reaction to Newtown school killings – Supporters of gun control hold a candlelight vigil for victims of the shooting outside the White House. Hide Caption 80 of 80

Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Mourners wipe tears away as they file out of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after the funeral of Emilie Parker in Ogden, Utah, on Saturday, December 22. Hide Caption 1 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – The casket of Rachel Marie D'Avino is carried into the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, Connecticut on Friday, December 21. Hide Caption 2 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Parents attend the funeral of Dylan Hockley, 6, a victim of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, on December 21 in Newtown, Connecticut. Hide Caption 3 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – A view from outside the funeral service for 6-year-old Dylan Hockley at Walnut Hill Community Church on December 21. Hide Caption 4 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Family members depart the Trinity Episcopal Church in Newtown, Connecticut, following a funeral for Benjamin Wheeler, 6, on December 20. Hide Caption 5 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Mourners, including Boy Scout and Tiger Scout members, depart the funeral on December 20, 2012. Wheeler was a member of Tiger Scout Den 6. Hide Caption 6 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Boy scouts salute as a funeral procession for Benjamin Wheeler enters the Trinity Episcopal Church on December 20, in Newtown, Connecticut. Hide Caption 7 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Firefighters salute as the casket of Daniel Barden, 7, a victim of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, is removed from St. Rose of Lima Church on Wednesday, December 19, 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut. Hide Caption 8 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Police escort the hearse bearing the casket of Daniel Barden from St. Rose of Lima Church on December 19. Hide Caption 9 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Mourners enter St. Rose of Lima Church for the funeral of Charlotte Bacon, 6, on December 19, in Newtown. Hide Caption 10 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – A police officer directs traffic as mourners enter the church for Charlotte Bacon's funeral on December 19. Hide Caption 11 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – A procession arrives for the funeral of Victoria Soto, 27, at Lordship Community Church in Stratford, Connecticut, on December 19. Soto was a first-grade teacher being hailed as a hero for protecting the children in her class during last week's school massacre in Newtown. Hide Caption 12 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – A woman carries a program with Soto's photo after attending a funeral for the slain teacher in Stratford on December 19. Hide Caption 13 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Bagpipers play at funeral services for Soto on December 19 in Stratford. Hide Caption 14 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Richard and Krista Rekos leave after a funeral service for their 6-year-old daughter, Jessica, at Saint Rose of Lima Church on Tuesday, December 18, in Newtown. Jessica was one of 20 children killed in last week's school shooting. Hide Caption 15 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Family and friends depart Jessica's funeral on December 18 in Newtown. Hide Caption 16 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – A child stands next to a makeshift memorial for Jessica Rekos following her funeral on December 18. Hide Caption 17 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Pallbearers carry out James Mattioli's casket at St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church after a funeral Mass on December 18 in Newtown. James, 6, was one of the 26 victims in the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown. Hide Caption 18 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Mourners console each other after the funeral for James Mattioli on December 18. Hide Caption 19 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – People arrive for the funeral of Jessica Rekos, 6, at St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church in Newtown on December 18. Hide Caption 20 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Jessica Rekos' casket arrives at St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church as mourners gather December 18. Hide Caption 21 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Mourners console each other after attending the funeral for Jack Pinto, 6, on December 17. Hide Caption 22 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Mourners grieve the death of Jack Pinto, 6, on December 17. Hide Caption 23 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – A mother and two children attend the funeral for Jack Pinto on December 17. Children are among those crowding the funeral for the 6-year-old boy. Hide Caption 24 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – A man comforts a young mourner at Honan Funeral Home while attending the funeral for Jack Pinto, 6, on December 17. Hide Caption 25 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Boys enter Honan Funeral Home before Jack Pinto's funeral on December 17 in Newtown. Hide Caption 26 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Veronika Pozner, mother of Noah Pozner, arrives for her son's funeral on Monday, December 17, at the Abraham L. Green and Son Funeral Home in Fairfield, Connecticut. Monday is the first day of funerals for the 20 children and seven adults who were killed by 20-year-old Adam Lanza on December 14. Hide Caption 27 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Three women embrace as they arrive for the funeral services for Noah Pozner on December 17. Hide Caption 28 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Mourners arrive at Noah Pozner's service in Fairfield on December 17. Hide Caption 29 of 30 Photos: Funerals: Community says goodbye Newtown funerals: Community says goodbye – Mourners leave Noah Pozner's service on December 17 in Fairfield. Hide Caption 30 of 30

Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Children in Newtown, Connecticut, return to school on December 18, 2012, four days after the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Hide Caption 1 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police officers search outside St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church in Newtown, Connecticut, on Tuesday, December 16, after a threat prompted authorities to evacuate the building. Investigators found nothing to substantiate the reported threat, a police official said, declining to provide additional details. The church held Sunday services following the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown. Hide Caption 2 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police officers walk out of St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church after the Newtown church received a threat December 16. Hide Caption 3 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Firefighters attach black bunting to a fire truck as a memorial at the fire station down the street from the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on Saturday, December 15. Hide Caption 4 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut Chief Medical Examiner H. Wayne Carver II talks to the media about the elementary school shooting during a press conference at Treadwell Memorial Park on December 15. Hide Caption 5 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Zulma Sein is hugged by a family member outside of the entrance to the Sandy Hook School on Saturday. Hide Caption 6 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Police officers keep guard at the entrance to the street leading to the Sandy Hook Elementary School on Saturday, December 15. Hide Caption 7 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police Lt. Paul Vance addresses the press on December 15. Hide Caption 8 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Police officers stand at the entrance to the street leading to the Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 15. Hide Caption 9 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Corinne McLaughlin, a student at the University of Hartford, bows her head during a candlelight vigil at Hartford, Connecticut's Bushnell Park on Friday, December 14, honoring the students and teachers who died at Sandy Hook Elementary School in nearby Newtown earlier in the day. Hide Caption 10 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Distraught people leave the fire station after hearing news of their loved ones from officials on Friday. Hide Caption 11 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Emergency workers stand in front of the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown. Hide Caption 12 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A child and her mother leave a staging area outside Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14. Hide Caption 13 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Members of the media converge on December 14 in front of an apartment at 1313 Grand Street in Hoboken, New Jersey. The apartment is believed to be connected to the Connecticut elementary school shooting. Hide Caption 14 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Faisal Ali, right, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, joins other people outside the White House on December 14 to participate in a candlelight vigil to remember the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Hide Caption 15 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police spokesman Lt. J. Paul Vance, center, briefs the media on the elementary school shootings during a press conference at Treadwell Memorial Park on December 14 in Newtown. Hide Caption 16 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People weep and embrace near Sandy Hook Elementary School on Friday, December 14. Hide Caption 17 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A woman leans on a man as she weeps near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 18 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – President Barack Obama wipes a tear as he speaks about the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School during a press briefing at the White House on December 14. Hide Caption 19 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A woman weeps near the site of a shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 20 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A woman weeps near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 21 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People comfort each other near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 22 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A man takes in the scene near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 23 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A young girl is given a blanket after being evacuated from Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 24 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – State police personnel lead children from the school. Hide Caption 25 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Children wait outside Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, after the shooting. Hide Caption 26 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A boy weeps at Reed Intermediate School after getting news of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 27 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – FBI SWAT team members walk along Dickinson Drive near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 28 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – An aerial view of Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut on December 14. Hide Caption 29 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Troopers arrive on the scene outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 30 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A Connecticut State Police officer runs with a shotgun at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown on December 14. Hide Caption 31 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Police patrol the streets around Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 32 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People try to deal with the shock of the attack outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 33 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police secure the scene of the shooting on December 14. Hide Caption 34 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People embrace outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 35 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A man escorts his son away from Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 36 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People take in the news outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 37 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People line up to enter Newtown Methodist Church near the the scene of the shooting on December 14. Hide Caption 38 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A woman speaks with a Connecticut state trooper outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 39 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – The streets around Sandy Hook Elementary are packed with first responders and other vehicles. 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Photos: Photos: Newtown grieves Photos: Photos: Newtown grieves Newtown grieves – Ken Henggeler started this memorial to the victims of the shooting at the intersection of Main Street and Sugar Street in Newtown, Connecticut. Hide Caption 1 of 6 Photos: Photos: Newtown grieves Newtown grieves – People pay their respects on Monday, December 17, at a memorial to the victims of an elementary school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. Hide Caption 2 of 6 Photos: Photos: Newtown grieves Newtown grieves – Teddy bears show the names of some of the victims at a makeshift memorial in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 17. Hide Caption 3 of 6 Photos: Photos: Newtown grieves Newtown grieves – Newtown resident Palmer Chiaepetta walks with his sons Jonathan and Jackson as the American flag flies at half-staff in Newtown, Connecticut, on Sunday, December 16, two days after the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Hide Caption 4 of 6 Photos: Photos: Newtown grieves Newtown grieves – Names of victims are displayed on a flag in the business area of Newtown, Connecticut, on December 16. Hide Caption 5 of 6 Photos: Photos: Newtown grieves Newtown grieves – Two people embrace near a makeshift memorial in Newtown, Connecticut, on Saturday, December 15. Hide Caption 6 of 6

"I wanted to think that," he said, "because I know the school is over there."

He fed his two cats in a loft above his garage and walked back toward his home. He spotted something odd toward the end of his driveway.

There were six children -- four girls and two boys -- sitting on his lawn. A woman sat in the middle with them. A tall, skinny man stood over them and spoke in a loud voice: "IT'S GOING TO BE ALL RIGHT! IT'S GOING TO BE ALL RIGHT!"

Rosen thought they were practicing a school skit. When he got closer, he could see the children were out of breath and crying.

"There's been an incident at the school," said the woman, a Sandy Hook bus driver.

Rosen's not sure how the bus driver ended up with the children on his lawn. Nor does he know the identity of the man, who later walked off.

But Rosen knows this: It was the start of a "journey into hell."

He once had worked as a psychologist with the chronically mentally ill at a state psychiatric hospital. But nothing had prepared him for what would transpire next. Instead, at 69, his grandfatherly instincts kicked in.

He invited the children into his home. He ran upstairs and grabbed as many stuffed animals as possible. They calmed the children briefly.

One of the girls stared out his living room window. "I want my mommy," she said. "I want my mommy."

The two boys sat on the floor, crying uncontrollably and shouting, "We can't go back to school! We can't go back to school! We don't have a teacher!"

Then they said the name of their 27-year-old teacher, Victoria Soto.

"Mrs. Soto! Mrs. Soto! She's gone," they said in unison.

One of the girls said she watched the teacher fall to the ground.

Without prompting, one of the boys added, "He had a big gun and he had a little gun."

The other boy said, "Yeah, yeah, he had a big gun and a little gun."

Then they both began anew their chilling cry. "We can't go back to school. We can't go back to school ..."

Blowing Mom a kiss

Grace McDonnell, 7, enjoyed Sandy Hook Elementary School with its loving teachers and inviting learning environment. Earlier in the week she had a stomachache, and her mother suggested she stay home.

"No way," the girl said. "I have too much fun there, and I don't want to miss anything."

Eager to learn, Grace would pack her bag the night before school and skip to the bus stop when it was time to leave.

The night before the tragedy, Mom and Dad tucked their only daughter in bed. "See you in the morning," Chris McDonnell told her. "Don't let the bed bugs bite."

Mom often joked that her daughter was so full of life "she would talk from the minute she woke up until the minute she went to bed. We were always, 'It's time for bed, Grace. It's time for bed, Grace.'"

That Friday morning was like any other school day, a whirlwind of activity before heading out the door. She skipped down the road and boarded the school bus.

Grace blew her mother a kiss, as she always did. An endearing final image.

'Luckiest guy in the room'

Bear was one of two third-graders chosen by their teacher for the important job of class helper. The pair headed out of the room that morning to deliver an attendance report to the office.

As they neared the office, gunshots rang out. Bear said he could see bullets flying by. Smoke filled the air.

The two children froze, like deer in headlights. A second-grade teacher saw the children were in harm's way, raced toward them and grabbed them. She pulled them into a bathroom with other children and barricaded the door.

"If she didn't do that, I don't know," said Bear's father, Andrei Nikitchyuk.

Nikitchyuk and his wife were filled with anxiety when they realized the robocall was real. Rumors were rampant. Parents were panicked. Police were everywhere.

A Ukrainian native, Nikitchyuk came to the United States in 1992 shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union. He had always felt safe here and had been fortunate enough to live the American dream.

He settled in Newtown eight years ago. His two oldest children, ages 13 and 14, had attended Sandy Hook.

"It's just horrific," Nikitchyuk said. "I don't know how our little ones are going to be affected by all this, but our older ones, I think, matured in just a few days."

The father was spurred to action: "This horrific event woke me up." He traveled to the White House to speak up for gun control. He was the Sandy Hook representative for a Newtown United delegation that was joined by families who had lost loved ones to gun violence in the mass shootings in Aurora, Colorado, Columbine and Virginia Tech, as well as random shootings in Chicago.

"I was the luckiest guy in the room because my kid survived and theirs didn't."

The group met with Valerie Jarrett, senior adviser to President Obama.

Nikitchyuk's message: "This is unacceptable in our society. We have to do better."

Emergency plans and instinct

Kindergarten teacher Janet Vollmer heard what she believed were gunshots. Then, the intercom system piped in the sounds of gunfire into her room. The teachers were well-schooled on drills; their principal made sure of that.

Vollmer immediately began putting her emergency planning to use. She knew the drill was to get kids outside and to the nearby firehouse. But it seemed too dangerous. She had 19 children she needed to protect.

"There was no announcement of what was going on," she said. "My instinct was it wasn't good."

The teacher of 18 years gathered her kindergartners in a cubby area away from the door. Teaching assistants closed the blinds.

"We read a story and we kept them calm," she said. "We do this as teachers. We are trained. We have drills. We talk to the kids and in case something were to happen, this is what we do."

After about 30 minutes, she said, police knocked on the door. The children were told to close their eyes and walk in a line outside. She told the kids to look straight at the walls and nothing else until they got outside. They headed to the Sandy Hook firehouse, the school's emergency gathering point.

It would be hours before she learned the awful magnitude. She had taught 10 of the slain children just last year.

'The gift of these children'

Gene Rosen's home sits right next to the firehouse. Inside his house, the kids continued to wail.

"We can't go back to school!"

At one point, one of the boys broke through his tears with a note of levity. He sat up, held his finger in the air and said, "Just saying, your house is very small."

"In that moment, he brought into the home peace and light," Rosen recalled. "I felt like an angel descended upon us and this boy, and we laughed."

"God sent a respite from hell -- just a moment of recess." He paused, then added: "They saw their teacher assassinated."

He and the school bus driver tried to call the children's parents, but they got answering machines. They notified the driver's supervisor who relayed the information to authorities. Some of the parents soon arrived. The parents, Rosen and the six kids walked to the neighboring firehouse.

The children and their teachers huddled in bay areas where firetrucks are typically kept so they could be counted.

Two hours later, after Rosen had returned home, a woman knocked on his door. She said she was the mother of 6-year-old Jesse Lewis.

"Her face looked frozen in fear. She said to me, 'I heard there were six kids here. Is he here?'"

Rosen knew the names of the six children who he helped. His heart sank. "No, he's not here," Rosen told her.

As he recalled that encounter, Rosen wept. "She was just looking for a miracle, and I wanted to deliver her son to her -- and I couldn't."

Initial reports had indicated two adults were dead, but by late Friday afternoon parents of the slain children were told of their loss at a private room in the firehouse.

Back at the firehouse, Rosen looked at a list posted later and wept again when he saw two of the names: Victoria Soto and Jesse Lewis.

Before the tragedy, Rosen often read children's books to an elementary school in a neighboring town.

He'd recently come across a kid's book about a girl whose dog died in a fire. For weeks afterward, the girl smelled soot in her dreams and couldn't sleep. Then, one night a one-eyed cat jumped into her bed, cuddled with her and purred. The cat's soothing purr helped her sleep for the first time.

"The book doesn't end with a rainbow," he said. "It ends with hope in the sense of the continuity of her healing."

He couldn't help but wonder: What will be Newtown's one-eyed cat?

"The one-eyed cat is here," he said. "I don't know what it is yet."

The son of Orthodox Jews from Ukraine, Rosen hasn't been to synagogue in more than 40 years. But he said God delivered six angels to him that day. "This experience has made me spiritual," he said. "I want to show those children that there is light.

"Let the goodness of the children, their essential innocence and goodness and energy -- let them provide us with a pathway," he said. "That's what I want the gift of these children to be."

'So many angels'

The McDonnells were overcome when they first saw Grace's white casket at the funeral home. "You felt like the floor was falling out beneath you and your breath was taken away," her mother said.

But then, they pulled out Sharpies of all colors and began drawing: peace signs, ice cream cones, lighthouses, sea gulls. The family said it looked like it was covered in graffiti by the time they were done.

"We had to take great joy in knowing that when we walked in there it was so white, and our breath was taken away," Lynn McDonnell said. "But when we walked out of there, it was like we had joy again. It had so much color."

The family also brought Grace's favorite pocketbook, seashells, hair bows and flip-flops, as well as her sunglasses and a frying pan. Her father placed his New York Yankees cap with her. Grace loved Taylor Swift and Kenny Chesney -- the family gave her music from both.

"When we left, we were like: She's fully stocked," her mom recalled.

Her father said that "thinking of her smile, her spark, her brightness" helped guide the family through this most difficult time. Telling Grace's 12-year-old brother Jack what had happened, he said, was the "toughest thing to do."

The McDonnells, like the other grieving families, met privately with President Obama when he visited Newtown last Sunday. Lynn McDonnell said his visit brought reassurance. "He's just a dad coming in to meet a dad and a mom and a son -- and we really felt that."

Grace was a budding artist. The family gave the president a painting of an owl she had drawn. He told the family he would treasure it.

The parents say they're comforted by the fact Grace died with her friends. "She was at a place that she loved," her mother said.

"We have so many angels and so many bright stars shining over all of us in this town right now," the father said. "They will teach us how to go on and how to live through them."

They have no hatred toward the shooter, a point they've emphasized to their surviving son.

"The thing that Grace taught us is that you've got to live for the future," her father said. "You've got to live for happiness, peace, and to not divert your energies to hate, anger. That wasn't her. It's not us."

That, they say, is their daughter's lasting legacy.