Kerri Reeves isn’t a mother, but she considers the students she cares for as the athletics trainer at Smiths Station High School to be her own children.

So, when a 16-year-old boy pointed a 9mm semi-automatic handgun at another student after they fought during basketball practice, Reeves didn’t hesitate.

“I just reacted,” she told the Ledger-Enquirer. “I just saw kids behind me, so my reaction was to get in between them.”

Her actions and words in the SSHS gym that late afternoon on Nov. 2 prevented a tragedy — without gunshots and without injuries.

The suspect was arrested and criminally charged, and Reeves was named Piedmont Columbus Regional’s First Friday Hero for January, an award usually given to first responders from law enforcement or emergency medical services. That day, however, Reeves indeed was a first responder.

From interviews and Lee County Sheriff’s Office reports, here’s how it happened.

Fight and gun threat

Toward the end of basketball practice, Reeves was in the training room when she heard an argument in the gym. Then she heard someone holler, “Fight!”

Along with the coaches, Reeves helped separate the combatants. One of the students left the gym, went to a car in the parking lot and returned with a handgun.

The suspect cocked the gun and aimed at the student he had fought. Reeves stepped between them and walked toward the gunman. She screamed at him to get out.

Reeves also ordered the targeted student to join the others in the locker room.

The suspect pointed the gun at Reeves’ face and yelled, “I’m going to kill that m—– f—–!”

Reeves kept screaming for the gunman to get out. She kept walking toward the gunman as he backed up toward the doors. He eventually obeyed and departed — without Reeves or anybody else putting their hands on him, she said, despite the LCSO incident report stating the suspect was pushed out of the building.

When the suspect left, Reeves locked the lobby doors and called 911. The suspect paced around the parking lot until getting in another car with three other occupants.

A sheriff’s deputy stopped them as they tried to drive away.

The 16-year-old suspect was arrested without incident at the scene. He was charged with:

• One count of first-degree terrorist threats

• One count of second-degree burglary

• One count of illegal possession of a firearm

• One count of menacing.

He was released on bonds totaling $25,500. His case is awaiting adjudication. He was expelled for the rest of the school year.

Responses

The armed student didn’t show any signs of distress leading up to the incident, said SSHS principal Brad Cook.

“There wasn’t anything glaring that was going to say he would react that way,” he said.

After calling 911, Reeves called SSHS athletics director Shana Johnson, who was at a bonfire for a community pep rally behind city hall, about two miles away. Her message was brief and to the point: “Gun. Student. Get here.”

Before she drove to the school, Johnson texted Cook, who also was at the bonfire. Cook called her back, and Johnson, who had arrived at the school by then, told him, “You need to get here now.”

False rumors started spreading. Cook received a text from a parent that a student with a gun was coming to the bonfire. He relayed that tip to a deputy sheriff, who told him the student was apprehended at the school.

“I didn’t know what I was going into,” Cook recalled thinking as he drove to the school. “I just knew it was a serious situation.”

When she arrived back at the school, Johnson saw four sheriff’s office cars in the parking lot. Deputies had the suspect and three other occupants of the getaway car on the ground.

Johnson was relieved. She thought about Reeves’ intervention and wondered “how close she came to potentially losing her life. We could have had some kids that could have also been in danger.”

Marveling at what Reeves did, Johnson said, “Nobody knows what they will do in that situation until they’re put in that situation. She didn’t back down. I firmly believe, if she had not held her ground, it would have gone a lot worse.”

The adrenaline of the moment prevented Reeves from thinking about the risk to her life. The impact of her reaction didn’t sink in until she saw Johnson approach her with tears in her eyes.

“Everybody was going home,” Reeves recalled thinking. “It was a blessing.”

Perspective

Cook put Reeves’ response in perspective.

“It just speaks to who she is, her character,” he said. “She loves these kids, and I don’t think there’s any greater display of that than what she did that day. … She put her life on the line for these kids. I mean, nothing says hero like that.”

Reeves, 37, has been an athletics trainer for 13 years. She is employed by the Hughston Clinic in Columbus. This is her fourth year at SSHS, where she appreciates the family atmosphere.

“From the kids to the parents, you just build a bond with them,” she said. “Since I’ve been here, I’ve had great support. My coaches are great. No matter what I need, we all work together. We all look out for each other, no matter what.”