Imagine sending your 6-year-old son to school and never seeing him again. It’s a parent’s worst nightmare. Jesse Lewis, a first grader at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. went to class on the morning of Dec. 14, 2012 and never returned home. Americans watched in horror as news began unfolding that a 20-year-old gunman had entered the school, killing Lewis, as well as 19 other children and six adults before fatally shooting himself.

This week on MY Lifestyle Extra, we speak exclusively to mother Scarlett Lewis as she gives her first national interview since her son Jesse Lewis was killed in the shooting while reportedly trying to lead other classmates away from the gunman. Find out why she is choosing to speak now, how she is handles the grief, her advice for anyone who has lost a child and how she is rebuilding her life.

Lewis is also focusing on making change in the world in honor of her son. Check out the Jesse Lewis Choose Love Foundation to see how she is now building bridges to prevent violence like this from happening again and what you can do to help.