MONROE COUNTY, Pa. — Parents in Monroe County are trying to make sense of another deadly school shooting after a teen in Georgia opened fire at his high school, killing four people.
"It's scary to know that every time he walks out the door, something could happen even at the school, and that is where you want to feel your kid is safe, said Maggie Capellan of Stroudsburg.
Capellan has a 15-year-old son. She says parents are left to wonder what would happen if something like this happened close to home.
"I actually did ask him what he would do, and he said, "Mom, I have no clue. Do we run?" I said I wouldn't know. He said, "I wouldn't even know what to do. Do we hide?" I said I wouldn't even know," described Capellan.
"I do remember when I was younger, having bomb threats and having to go outside, but it didn't seem as often. I feel like nowadays you're hearing about a school shooting or a threat," said Megan Hernandez of Albrightsville.
Newswatch 16 spoke with some parents at the Western Pocono Community Library.
Many parents say they talk to their children about what is happening at other schools in the country, but it's not easy to have that conversation.
Hernandez has kids in fourth and seventh grade.
"It's hard, you know because you don't want to make them more upset. It's a fine line, you want them to be educated about it, but you don't want them upset," explained Hernandez.
"We talk to them realistically about it, but we try not to obviously be scary, just more of this is what is going on, and this is what you need to be aware of," said Jessica Flickner.
Jessica Flickner has two kids, ages 10 and 13, who attend the Pleasant Valley Area School District. The district was forced to go virtual for the day after a threat, just after the latest school shooting.
"It's a whole different world. There are things that my 13-year-old talks to me and asks about that at 13, I wouldn't have had any idea what he was talking about, so it's very different, and I think it's important to be open with your kids and have those conversations but protect them in ways you can," said Flickner.
Parents also tell Newswatch 16 they remind their children to be kind to their classmates and to let an adult know if something seems wrong.