Thousands of students nationwide are preparing for Saturday’s “March for our Lives” event.
The rally, planned by survivors of the Parkland Shooting, demands legislative action in Congress that addresses gun violence and school safety.
Some marching will be survivors, others are marching in remembrance of the victims.
All wanting change.
For Rachel Buksbaum, she’s marching in honor of one of her best friends, Alyssa Alhadeff.
Alhadeff was one of the 17 victims killed during the school massacre.
Rachel spent the day of February 14th, glued to her phone waiting for Alyssa's name to show up on her screen.
“I kept refreshing my phone. Shutting it down saying maybe she didn't get it or maybe it didn't go through. Everyone else that I texted, I got a reply from saying they're okay but I never got a reply from her and It was really scary,” says Buksbaum.
Since then, she's been left with many questions surrounding her friend's death.
“I always wonder was she in pain? Was it instant? What was her family going through? What was going on in her head,” she says.
Rachel and Alyssa met at summer camp. Each year, they looked forward to spending time together.
“Some of the people at my camp, we decided to dedicate our final summer as campers to Alyssa. We're all writing the hashtag Live for Alyssa, which is a hashtag her mom started to live life to your fullest because you don't know what's going to happen. Alyssa was such a happy person, she always had a smile on her face, so we decided we're going to live life like she did,” she says.
The pain of losing a close friend, motivated Rachel to use her voice and march to make a difference.
This weekend, she will join thousands of other students in Washington D.C. wanting the same.
“I want to go to D.C. because it will have a much bigger impact than staying in Tampa Bay or Orlando. There are more people in D.C. that have an impact than the people that are Florida,” she says.
Rachel is joining a group of about 30 other Tampa Bay students.
They leave for D.C. Friday afternoon.
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