“My kids go to school right next to a school where there was a shooting today”
On Monday, Melissa Joan Hart recounted her experience of being near the victims of the Nashville elementary school shooting, which resulted in the death of seven individuals, including the shooter.
In a social media video, the actress widely known for her childhood roles in Clarissa Explains It All and Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, shared that her children attend a school adjacent to the shooting site. Melissa Joan Hart and her husband, Mark Wilkerson, had previously experienced a similar situation when they resided in Connecticut near Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Fortunately, their three sons, Mason, Braydon, and Tucker, were absent during the recent incident.
“My kids go to school right next to a school where there was a shooting today,” Hart said. “We moved here from Connecticut, where we were in a school little ways down from Sandy Hook, so this is our second experience with a school shooting with our kids being in close proximity.”
Melissa and her husband were on their way to attend a conference at their children’s school when they assisted a group of kindergartners attempting to escape the shooter by crossing a busy highway. They helped the children and their teachers reach safety and aided a mother in reuniting with her kids. Despite the frightening experience, everyone involved remained unharmed.
Hart broke down while narrating the experience.
She expressed frustration and despair, stating she was at a loss for words. “Enough is enough,” she said before urging her audience to pray for the families affected by the tragedy.
In her social media post, she disclosed that although she recorded the video the day of the shooting, she decided to wait until the following day to share it as it was too overwhelming and painful to share earlier.
In 2016, Hart participated in a gun control protest on New York’s Brooklyn Bridge, joining other parents and actress Julianne Moore. Hart has previously stated her desire to lead a relaxed lifestyle with her family in Nashville, as they enjoy being in the outskirts and surrounded by nature.
She mentioned in a Glamour magazine interview in December 2020 that Nashville is the closest city they have lived in for a while.
“Nashville is the closest to a city we’ve been in in a long time,” she said. “We really like to be out in the outskirts. The kids like to be out in the woods and climbing trees and catching frogs. I grew up that way, so I want them to as well.”
Along with Hart, other celebrities residing in Music City, such as Mickey Guyton and Sheryl Crow, have also spoken out about the tragic school shooting in Nashville.