Fresno resident Becky Basara has been glued to the TV. As a mother of two college students in the Boston area, she's been on edge and staying connected with them in every way possible.
Basara's 21-year-old son, Michael is a student at MIT studying Aerospace Engineering in Cambridge. And that's where police say the suspects fatally shot an officer late Thursday night.
Basara said, "My son's just really sad. I think the police officer was in his 20s, that's just too young. I don't get this, but this is where my kids want to be and I just have to pray they're going to be safe."
Her daughter, Shannon, 19, is a freshman majoring in nursing at Northeastern. Action News spoke with her by phone.
"Today it's hitting people more I think. Oh my gosh, we have the suspects like this is really happening and we're on lockdown," Shannon said.
Shannon's school is less than a mile away from where the bombing happened. Monday, she was a spectator at the marathon, watching her uncle run. She was at a nearby restaurant when the explosion happened.
"There were people crying there were so many sirens I didn't know what had happened. I was looking for smoke but you could smell it in the air," Shannon said.
Basara says it's hard to be here in the Valley, while her children are thousands of miles away.
"Innocence lost, my daughter says she still gets jittery when sirens go off," Basara said.
It's a life changing event not only for those young students, but their family back home. Becky and her daughter will be reunited in a few weeks. It's a moment both are looking forward to.
Shannon said because of this event, she's realized she wants to be a trauma nurse so she can help those in a critical time.
