*American Bad Ass*
She was 27 years old.
A first-grade teacher at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
And when the sh**ting began on December 14, 2012, Victoria Leigh Soto didn't run away from her students.
She moved toward them.
She gathered the children, six- and seven-year-olds and tried to hide them around the classroom.
Then the Armed man entered.
Victoria stood between him and her students.
He asked where the children were.
She lied.
โTheyโre in the gym,โ she reportedly told him, directing him away from the children.
The children were actually hiding nearby.
The Armedman opened fire.
Victoria was struck repeatedly.
But her students had been given a chance to survive.
Some of the children escaped the classroom and eventually made it outside, where they were found by a neighbor.
Victoria didn't get that chance.
She had dreamed of becoming a teacher since childhood, even pretending to teach her stuffed animals.
She had graduated from Eastern Connecticut State University.
She was engaged to be married.
She had a life waiting for her.
But on that morning, she made a decision in seconds.
Protect the children.
Stand between them and danger.
Give them a chance to live.
Victoria Leigh Soto was among the educators and staff members who lost their lives at Sandy Hook.
Her students survived.
Her wedding never happened.
Her future was taken from her.
But the children she protected were given a future of their own.
Victoria Soto didn't simply teach her students.
When they needed her most, she became their shield.