“It was, and is, shocking. A horrific tragedy weighing heavily on our hearts,” Superintendent of Schools Eileen King said Monday morning. “Anyone who works with kids, who dedicates their life to kids has been significantly affected by this.”

After hearing about the mass shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., Friday morning, King contacted all AOS 98 administrators.

When Boothbay Region Elementary School students arrived at school on the morning of December 17, they were greeted by Boothbay Harbor Police Officer Larry Brown. Seeing Brown at the school was not unusual for the students; he has been the school resource officer for the past two years. Brown is at the school two to three times per week walking the halls and talking to students. This week, he will be greeting kids arriving at school every morning.

“I'll be there for security, of course, and to help make the kids feel more comfortable, and answer questions,” Brown said.

The principals, King said, are taking the lead with communication. Guidance counselors, teachers, administrators, and the school nurse and social worker arrived at school ready to offer support and assurance to kids about their safety at school; to listen, to offer a shoulder to cry on, or simply be ready with extra hugs.

Tammy Blackman, the social worker for Boothbay, Southport and Edgecomb schools, was at BRES on Monday morning. Blackman is on site at Edgecomb Eddy School and Southport Central School one day each week.

Blackman said she had been approached by a couple of middle school-aged children who wanted to know if they were safe at school.

“We talked about what their perception was; did they feel safe? And both students said they did, but at the same time they were feeling apprehensive after what they had seen on TV,” Blackman said. “We talked about that and I assured them that the schools were safe. (Staff) were instructed to be here for the kids if the needed us.”

Blackman said she believed having Brown at the school Monday morning helped the kids feel safe, and added a bit of normalcy to the day because he has become “part of the schools' culture.”

Police Chief Bob Hasch said the department would be “stepping up” its presence at the school in response to events in Connecticut.

“We wanted to have Officer Brown more visible this week than usual,” Hasch said. “We would like people to know that we have discussed issues like what happened in Connecticut many, many times. We have devised flexible plans for many scenarios that we are always reviewing.”

On Monday afternoon, King wrote a letter to parents about safety in the AOS 98 district schools, and student/parental, concerns. Read the letter.

“We do absolutely everything we can for all of our kids,”' King said. “We need to continue to provide them with the best education possible in the safest environment possible.”

Blackman recommended The National Association of School Psychologists website, www.nasponline.org as a useful resource for parents to help cope with national and local disaster.

Chief Hasch is an officer with two sons who attend BRES. And, as a parent he also struggled to find the right words to say.

“I talked about it differently with my younger son than my older son,” Hasch said. “I told both of them the best thing they could do was to think if something ever happened. Think about where you are, where the exits are, where the safe places are; to keep a cool head (as much as is possible), and try to help other kids.”