The iridescent neon lights now illuminate the night sky along the strip in Las Vegas, Nev., where one year ago this month tragedy hit and figuratively darkened the lights for many due to the 58 lives lost this day.

It has been one year since one of the mass shootings in Las Vegas.  MISD Executive Director of Curriculum, Sharon Carroll, attended the Route 91 Harvest last year.

This year on October 1, the survivors, friends, and families were invited back to the scene in Las Vegas for the year memoriam. The lights on the normally-glitzy strip were dimmed at 10 p.m. and there was a 58 second moment of silence held, one second for each victim that had lost their lives that night. She was present at the shooting last year on Oct. 1 in Las Vegas.

She attended the event with her friend, Marcy Ross, for their birthdays, not expecting to be present for a historically tragic event.  She reflects back on the event one year ago.

“The event did affect me more than I initially thought,” Carroll said. “I think I felt like it would be something that I could ‘forget’ by having other things occupy my time, but it just creeps in daily.  During the last couple of months though, thinking about it often has gotten less frequent.”

After the event happened, many of the survivors came together through a Facebook group page. The page posts motivation content, what the survivors are up to now, and where they can go to receive more help if needed. The group has over 5,000 members that post daily.

“This is an event that is indescribable and one in which very few people can relate. It is difficult sometimes to express feelings when no one else can truly understand the trauma associated with this type of event.  My friend and I rely on each other for that support and belong to a Facebook group of survivors from Texas for support,” Carroll said.

She added the trip back was a healing piece to the puzzle, needed to heal.  It will take some time to recover and heal from the trauma, but still, Carroll is a survivor.

“We went back to Las Vegas on the one-year anniversary to attend benefit activities and retrace our steps.  We were able to put together the pieces that we couldn’t remember when running and hiding and that was helpful in finding closure.  However, seeing the victims’ families and friends at these events really made it an extremely emotional trip,” Carroll said.