Remembering Sandy Hook, 10 Years Later
Wednesday December 14, 2022, 10:00 am
Colonial Church in Prairie Village, 7039 Mission Road
On the 10th anniversary of the tragic mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, we’ll gather to remember its 26 victims – who they were and what they loved.
The remembrance will feature a photo of each first-grader and educator who died the morning of December 14, 2012, when a 20-year-old gunman entered the building with an AK-15 assault rifle. An interactive reading of “A Litany on the Tragedy of Gun Violence” adapted from the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program will also be shared.
For those who choose to stay after the program, we’ll gather over coffee and light pastries to share memories of where we were when first hearing news of the shooting plus our reactions then and now. Weather permitting, we’ll then gather outside the church (bring your homemade sign) to remind the public of this tragedy and the many more mass shootings that sadly have followed.
NOTE: The Church is undergoing a major renovation on the east side lower level, so no parking or entry is available near the Social Hall. However, parking at the far end of the lower level closest to Mission Road is available with a walkway leading to the church’s front entrances. You can find additional spaces in the south parking lot facing 71st St. Both front doors to the church will be open the morning of December 14.
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Advocating with Money, and Yes, Phone Calls
As that old saying goes, there’s more than one way to skin a cat and so, too, with advocating for gun safety. Attorney Josh Koskoff, this year’s Community Forum keynote speaker, suggested several ways to make your money speak as loudly as your words.
- Are you an investor? Check to see whether your mutual funds include publicly held firearms manufacturers such as Smith & Wesson, Axon and Sturm Ruger & Company (RGR). Thanks to Dave Webster of GGS’ Advocacy Committee for compiling a partial list of mutual funds. See the list here and learn more at Gun Free Funds.
- Do you know your banker? Gun manufacturers need capital and rely on banks for loans. Check with your local bank to learn whether its corporate parent financially supports gun manufacturers through loans. Explain why you’re asking so bankers understand their business decisions affect whether accountholders stay or leave their institutions. Once you get answers, decide whether to continue banking there. If you decide to leave, tell your banker that, too.
- Where do your tax-deductible charitable dollars go? Consider supporting groups promoting gun safety and/or honoring victims of gun violence. Mr. Koskoff donated his speaker’s fee to the memorial fund of Vicki Soto, one of the six teachers killed at Sandy Hook. The fund’s mission is inspired by Vicki’s devotion to early childhood literacy. Read more about Vicki and her memorial fund.
Have time for a phone call? Join those of us volunteering with the Newtown Action Alliance to phone legislators each Monday, urging passage of the federal Assault Weapons Ban.
In September, the U.S. House passed the ban and sent it to the Senate, where it’s languished ever since. Our current efforts include calling Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, urging him to bring the assault weapons ban to the floor for a vote, as well as President Biden and the 38 Senate co-sponsors urging the same. Even in the current lame duck session, there’s still time for the bill to come to the floor.
Whether the Senate passes the legislation or not, the American public and especially voters need to know which Senators refuse to ban these lethal weapons and which Senators want them off the streets.
Click here for helpful scripts and phone numbers, then make as many phone calls as you can.
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GGS Starts its 10th Anniversary with a Good Time Had by All
Close to 100 people helped GGS begin observing its 10th anniversary at a kickoff event last month at the Meadowbrook Park Clubhouse in Prairie Village.
GGS members and their guests enjoyed a brief program, delicious food and wine, socializing with new and old friends and participating in prize drawings. Many attendees joined GGS for the first time while others renewed their memberships.
Close to 100 guests enjoyed the lovely venue with a beautiful view. Jim and Patti Regan received the Pat Russell Volunteer(s) of the Quarter. GGS guys getting the wine ready: Alan Jacobson, Dave Webster, and Ray Brown. Delicious and beautiful hors d’oeuvres and desserts were served.
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Serving Thanksgiving with Friends and Supporters
For the first time since the pandemic, GGS members joined friends and supporters at Mothers United and Gregg Tabernacle AME in KCMO at their community Thanksgiving meal.
We were among volunteers who helped serve more than 100 people seated at beautifully decorated round tables. Many community leaders spoke at the event, including Alvin Brooks, founder of Ad Hoc Group Against Crime, and Damon Daniel, its current president.
Jill Buford, Community Dinner organizer, and GGS Board member volunteer servers Judy Sherry, Carol Gee, Julie Young, and Carla Oppenheimer.
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News You Can Use
This column from a local police psychologist supports the idea that access to guns contributes more to mass shootings than mental health problems: Guns, not mental health issues, cause US mass shootings.
Read this Letter to the Editor from GGS founder and president Judy Sherry, published last week in The Kansas City Star after the recent mass shootings in Colorado and Virginia.
We need to be aware of the messaging being used by opponents of Red Flag laws: Federal judge in Texas rules that disarming those under protective orders violates their Second Amendment rights.
Deadly Intersection of White Supremacy and Firearms
The Center for Gun Violence Solutions at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health held a webinar on the complex and deadly intersection of white supremacy, political violence, guns and the Second Amendment. Panelists touched upon the events and the aftermath of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. View the webinar here. If you’re unable to watch the entire webinar, give special attention to these participants at the noted time marks: U.S. Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland (8:22-22:50) and Tim Carey, Law & Policy Advisor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (30:14 – 39:25).
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Only nine states plus the District of Columbia require waiting periods, ranging from 3 to 14 days, before gun buyers can take possession of the firearms they’ve purchased.
– Everytown for Gun Safety
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Say Their Names
Following are another 18 lives lost to firearms since 10/26. That brings the total to 231 homicides in the metro area since January 1. We say their names while we keep true to our vision that one day everyone in our community will be safe from gun violence.
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Mark Your Calendar
Wednesday, December 14, 10:00 am
Sandy Hook Remembrance
Colonial Church in Prairie Village, 7039 Mission Road
Sunday, January 1, 2023
Happy New Year!
Wishing everyone a happy, healthy, and fulfilling 2023
Monday, January 23, 2023
GGS Monthly Meeting and Program: Countering the Firehose of Falsehoods
Colonial Church in Prairie Village, 7039 Mission Road (meeting in the Sanctuary)
4:00 to 5:30 pm
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Our Vision
All members of our community have the right to feel safe from gun violence.
Our Mission
We focus on working for solutions, educating the community and seeking common ground reform that respects the rights of gun owners and non-owners alike. |
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