Julia Cook is a children's author. Her books range from silly topics, to serious ones, such as school shootings.
"You can't be a 'shut the door, turn out the lights and hide in the corner' kind of person anymore. It's just not effective."
Cook wrote two books for children about disasters."I'm Not Scared, I'm Prepared" teaches kids what to do if an active shooter is present. "The Ant Hill Disaster" teaches kids how to heal afterwards.
"You know, when an anthill gets stomped on, the ants run away, and they come back and they rebuild it, " Cook said.
"I'm Not Scared, I'm Prepared" guides readers through an A.L.I.C.E drill. A.L.I.C.E stands for alert, lockdown, inform, counter, evacuate. It's being proactive in the event of an emergency.
"I learned all about ALICE today, i climbed out the window and ran to the big tree twice. I ran down the halls zigzag with my hands in the air," Cook says, reading a page out of "I'm Not Scared, I'm Prepared".
The book comes with a list of concepts for the A.L.I.C.E training in elementary schools. Cook says she just wants kids to understand what they need to do, just in case.
"When I went to school, we didn't have to think about that, but today I mean, we kind of live in an environment where we have to," said Roger Peterson, a father of two daughters.
Cook says her books not only teach kids how to cope with disaster, but tells parents how to talk to with.
"I went through ALICE training, and I listened to those Sandy Hook parents talk, and I listened to "if we did this, if we had done that, then this wouldn't have happened"."
This is one author's mission to help write a peaceful future.
