Eileen Granata's brother Kevin was one of 32 people killed in the Virginia Tech mass shooting in 2007. While the tragedy in Connecticut has been extremely difficult for all of us to watch, not many of us can relate to it the way the Granata family does.
Kevin was a world renowned scientist and bio-medics professor at Virginia Tech. He was in his office when the chaos began. A group of students came to tell him about the shootings and he locked all of them in his office. He then went to see what was happening and if he could help.
Eileen and her family were hoping tougher gun laws would be put in place after the tragedy and she hopes no one else has to die in a senseless attack before changes are made. She does not want a ban on guns, but she would like to see stricter regulations on semi-automatics and large quantities of ammunition. She realizes it will not solve everything, but says if changes can save lives it is well worth it, no matter how difficult.
She said the senselessness of the shootings will never go away and that is something the Connecticut families will have to live with. She says her heart bleeds for the families, knowing what they will be faced with in the coming days, months and years.
Kevin left behind a wife and 3 young children. His oldest son is a freshman at Virginia Tech and he lit the candle in honor of his father at a vigil in honor of the victims this year.
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