When a gunman opened fire inside a Newtown, Connecticut, elementary school Friday, he cut short 26 lives. Six women who worked at Sandy Hook Elementary were killed, in addition to 20 students -- 12 girls and eight boys.

Here are details about their lives:

Charlotte Bacon, 6

Charlotte was sweet, outgoing and full of energy, her grandmother told CNN affiliate WCCO in Minnesota.

"This is tough. This is surreal. You can't believe this could happen," Irene Hagen told the station. "The whole family is just devastated and we're all trying to come to terms with it."

She said her granddaughter loved school and dresses. Her hair was a mass of beautiful red curls.

"It's horrible. It's really horrible," Hagen told WCCO. "It's hard to believe that someone would kill children, innocent children."

Daniel Barden, 7

Daniel earned his missing two front teeth, his family used to say. His "fearless" pursuit of happiness and life also earned him ripped jeans.

"Despite that, he was, as his mother said, 'Just So Good,' " his family wrote in a statement published in the New Haven Register.

Taking after his musician dad, he and his siblings -- brother James and sister Natalie -- formed a band, in which he played drums.

He loved to ride waves at the beach and make s'mores around bonfires with his cousins.

"He embodied everything that is wholesome and innocent in the world," the family said.

Rachel D'Avino, 29

She likely didn't know it when she died, but her best friend was about to propose.

He had recently asked D'Avino's parents for permission, and he was planning to ask for her hand in marriage on Christmas Eve.

That and other details about D'Avino's life were described in an obituary posted on the website of Munson-Lovetere Funeral Homes of Connecticut.

"Her presence and tremendous smile brightened any room she entered," it read.

Born in Waterbury, she received her undergraduate degree from the University of Hartford and her master's from Post University. She was working toward her doctorate at the University of St. Joseph of Hartford.

Rachel loved karate, cooking, animals, photography and her two younger siblings.

"Her passion, however, was her occupation as a behavioral therapist working with children within the autism spectrum," the obituary read.

In lieu of flowers, it asked that donations be made to Autism Speaks, an advocacy organization.

Olivia Engel, 6

Her favorite stuffed animal was a lamb; pink and purple were her favorite colors.

Olivia's family posted a statement on Facebook with those and other details about their beloved daughter.