May 24, 2022, is a day Arnulfo Reyes said he’ll never forget.

“I can remember from that day, I laid there and I prayed,” Reyes said. “I prayed ‘God, if you're going to take me, take me now.’"

Reyes was a fourth grade teacher at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. He said what was supposed to be a celebration turned into the deadliest school shooting in the history of Texas.

“It was just like a typical day, we knew we were going to have award ceremonies that day so we were going to get ready for that, “Reyes aid.

Reyes was a teacher at classroom 111. He said after the award ceremony, 11 of his students stayed behind.

“I was going to let them watch movies, let them eat their snacks and stuff like that,” Reyes said.

As they got ready to watch the movie, they began to hear loud booms getting closer to their classroom.

RELATED STORY: Timeline of deadly mass shooting in Uvalde

“It was pretty much next door already when I realized what it was,” Reyes said.

A gunman had entered room 112, and then crossed through a connecting door into Reyes’ classroom.

“I told the kids to get in their spots we practiced all the time,” Reyes said. “As I was getting to my position, I looked to the door and he was standing there. That's when he shot me and I fell to the ground. Then he came around and shot them."

Nineteen students and two teachers were killed by the gunman.

Reyes was the only one in his classroom who survived after he was shot in the arm and his back.

It would take law enforcement officers 77 minutes to confront and kill the gunman. 

A recent federal report found multiple failures by officers that allowed the shooting to continue even as police arrived to the school.

“I was in a lot of pain, but I was just hoping that someone would come in soon and it never happened,” Reyes said.

Reyes has since retired from teaching, and now runs a nursery and gift shop.

But his fight isn't over.

“My number one priority is gun violence, to bring awareness to the dangers of guns,” Reyes said.

Reyes has taken that mission all the way to the state capitol to advocate for stronger gun laws. He said it’s a promise he made to his 11 students.

“I will not let them die in vain, so I will keep on advocating for those kinds of laws,” Reyes said. “These kids could be your own kids because I always thought it could never happen here, and it happened here."

Reyes said he'll be waving an orange flag on Saturday at the plaza in Uvalde to honor the victims, and bring awareness to gun violence.

Watch the video above for the full story.