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A nation mourns after the second deadliest school shooting in U.S. history at Sandy Hook Elementary, which left 20 children and six staff members dead.
By Tracy Connor and Sandra Lilley, NBC News
One of Newtown?s heroic teachers ? remembered as a bright light on the darkest of days ? was being laid to rest Wednesday.
Mourners who arrived at a church in Stratford, Conn., for Victoria Soto?s funeral were handed ribbons of green, her favorite color.
Obtained by NBC News
Victoria Soto, 27, first-grade teacher at Sandy Hook elementary. Soto had taught for five years and was known by students as silly and loving.
Outside, they spoke of the 27-year-old?s selfless final act: She died trying to protect her first-grade students at Sandy Hook Elementary School from rifle fire during Friday?s massacre, according to her family.
?Mind-boggling what she had to go through,? said family friend Ryan Ortiz, 27. ?No matter how many times I sit at home and think of what I would have done, you just can't imagine being in that situation.
?In my opinion, she was that light amidst the darkness that was going on that day in that school,? Ortiz said. ?There's really no other way to remember her than being that light in that room."
Soto, who was in her fifth year of teaching, was finishing up her daily morning meeting with the students of Classroom 10 when gunman Adam Lanza began his rampage.
Relatives say they were told she hurried the kids into a closet behind her and tried to shield them from the bullets.
Some of the children in her class managed to survive the slaughter. Many did not.
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Funerals were being held Wednesday for three more first-graders -- Charlotte Bacon, Caroline Previdi and Daniel Barden ? continuing a week of mourning.
A large contingent of firefighters arrived for 7-year-old Daniel?s funeral at St. Rome of Lima church in Newtown. Two of his relatives are members of the New York City Fire Department, and he dreamed of wearing the FDNY uniform when he grew up, according to a Facebook post from a firefighters? foundation.
Later on Wednesday, many of Newtown?s residents were expected to attend a wake for Sandy Hook Principal Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung, 47, who has been hailed as a hero for running toward the sound of gunfire after Lanza blasted his way into the school.
Family: Boy's favorite teacher died cradling him
At a memorial last week, President Obama held the principal?s granddaughter, just a baby. ?My mom would be so proud,? her daughter tweeted. ?But not as proud as I am of her.?
Many of the services have been marked not just by tears, but by calls for tougher gun laws from those in attendance.
Miguel Padilla, who works with Soto?s father, said he hoped the unity shown in the wake of the tragedy would translate into legislative action.
?With assault rifles, there is no need for those,? he said outside the church. ?If you need to protect yourself, a handgun is good enough. That a 20-year old can get his hands on [an assault rifle] is pathetic.
?Something big has to come out of this,? he added. ?They have to change the law.?
As funerals are held for four more Sandy Hook Elementary victims, President Obama will announce that Vice President Biden will spearhead a panel to formulate gun policies in the aftermath of the Newtown tragedy. NBC's Craig Melvin reports.
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