77 Minutes: A Story About Surviving Through Faith

On May 24, 2022, Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, became the site of one of the deadliest school shootings in American history. Inside Classroom 106, fourth-grade teacher Mercedes Salas spent 40 minutes on the floor with sixteen students, pressing her body against a locked door, whispering prayers, and refusing to let fear win. This is her story.Written with raw honesty and deep faith, 77 Minutes is not a news report or a political statement. It is a first-person account of what it means to survive the unsurvivable, to lead when you are terrified, and to carry the weight of grief long after the cameras leave. Through biblical reflections on Esther, Moses, Job, Hagar, Ruth, and Judas, Salas weaves her experience into a larger story of courage, love, and the God who sees us even in the wilderness.For survivors, for educators, and for anyone who has asked "why me?" in the aftermath of tragedy, this book offers no easy answers, but something better: the steady presence of someone who has been there and the faith that held her together when everything else fell apart. Read more