Since that day, some of the victims’ families have worked to stay out of the public eye, seeking privacy or even fearing harassment. Others have publicly fought for causes such as mental health supports or gun violence prevention - all an effort to prevent the next Sandy Hook.

It was a day that captured the attention of the country, from elected officials and advocates who stood up to try to drive the necessary change to prevent future tragedies to the caregivers who went from assuming their children were coming home that day from school to simply hoping.

Since that day, educators have been trained in best practices for keeping their children safe should a gunman enter the building and students regularly go through active shooter drills.

The children who hid in their classrooms on Dec. 14, 2012, grew into young adults with the shadow of that day ever hanging over them. Some have become activists, advocating for gun violence prevention.

“Sandy Hook was one of those watershed moments that taught us that gun violence can happen anywhere ... that this is a pervasive public health crisis that can happen anywhere,” Jeremy Stein, executive director of CT Against Gun Violence said. "On the other hand, this awakening hasn’t always translated into tangible change.”

Connecticut legislators acted swiftly, passing legislation in 2013 that bans certain assault weapons, limits high-capacity magazines and requires background checks on all gun purchases. Federal policy has come at a much slower pace. President Barack Obama visited Sandy Hook after the shooting and pushed for gun reform that never came due to legislative gridlock. In the wake of the school shooting in Uvalde, Tex., legislation was passed that makes it more difficult for young people to buy guns, tightens restrictions on gun purchases for domestic abusers and incentivizes states to pass “red flag” laws.

On a state level, firearm legislation that has been implemented since the Sandy Hook shooting has been more restrictive. Red flag laws, restrictions for domestic violence offenders and child access prevention laws are among the class of restrictive policies that have been passed in the last decade. Despite tighter laws, 45 people were injured or killed in school shootings in 2021, and that figure rose to 47 in the first five months of 2022 alone, according to the Washington Post. Gun deaths rose 35 percent nationally from 2012 to 2020 , spurred by increases in both homicides and suicides, according to the Giffords Law Center, an anti-gun nonprofit.

Meanwhile, the Newtown community has promised to never forget the tragedy, but also not to be defined by it. The town has had to balance honoring the victims, while respecting the way each person grieves. This has culminated with the opening of a memorial in mid-November that is meant to serve as a place for quiet reflection.

What happens after the town and nation mark 10 years since the mass shooting is yet to be written. The memorial has been constructed, a new school built and the survivors of that day have grown up, while the families of the 26 victims have found their own way to mourn those killed.

All the while, the tragedy remains an ever present part of the local community and the drive for change across the country.

“The world unfortunately found out where Sandy Hook was under the most trying of circumstances — people didn’t know Newtown until that fateful day, and now the whole world is focused on Sandy Hook.” - Alan Martin, a 50-year resident of Newtown who helped direct construction of the memorial.