Remembering Emilie and Joey
- Brandon Bain
- Dec 14, 2018
- 2 min read
Updated: Nov 8, 2024
<img decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-82010 lazyload" src="https://safeandsoundschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Joey-96x300.png" alt="" width="260" height="812" srcset="https://safeandsoundschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Joey-96x300.png 96w, https://safeandsoundschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Joey-768x2400.png 768w, https://safeandsoundschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Joey-330x1030.png 330w, https://safeandsoundschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Joey-480x1500.png 480w, https://safeandsoundschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Joey-226x705.png 226w, https://safeandsoundschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Joey-320x999.png 320w, https://safeandsoundschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Joey.png 800w" sizes="(max-width: 260px) 100vw, 260px" />December 14, 2018
I still remember Emilie pacing back and forth through the endless, pink Barbie packaging that filled the aisle at Target. She couldn’t quite decide what to buy. She was picking out a gift for her sweet classmate, Josephine (Joey for short), for her seventh birthday party. Joey was autistic and apraxic, which meant she was non-verbal and limited in her ability to communicate. She was also loving, affectionate, and girly, very girly. Just like Emilie.
She was the perfect friend for Emilie, who loved having a captive audience to listen to her endless ideas and stories. Emilie and Joey had become dear friends during their time together in school. Emilie loved to tell me all the things she was learning about Joey and their every little interaction. Like when Joey would excitedly touch the puffy skirts Emilie would wear to school and the joy on her face when she would see Emilie’s Barbie backpack each morning. As Emilie continued pacing up and down the aisle, determined to find the perfect gift for Joey, she finally found it. A ballerina Barbie…tutu and all.
I will always remember the love Emilie and Joey had for not only each other, but for all their classmates, teachers, and friends. They loved their school! After their tragic deaths on December 14, 2012, at Sandy Hook School, Michele and I chose to honor their lives. We built a legacy unique to our girls, a legacy devoted to protecting the sacred environment all children need to learn and grow safely – and joyfully! A legacy devoted to safe and sound schools. Every speech we give, every workshop we deliver, every program we create has our girls’ fingerprints all over it.
Emilie and Joey live on in our work, inspiring thousands of parents, students, teachers, administrators, and mental health and safety professionals in their efforts to make schools a safe place for all. This year, as we mark the 6th anniversary of the tragedy that took their lives, help us celebrate their light, love, joy, and hope–and their legacy of safe and sound schools.
Joey and Emilie, we love you forever.
Alissa Parker is mother of Emilie Parker, killed in the tragedy at Sandy Hook School on December 14, 2012. Alissa co-founded Safe and Sound Schools with Michele Gay, mother of Josephine Gay. Alissa is author of An Unseen Angel and a nationally sought after speaker on school safety, hope and healing.
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