National Safe Day can help prevent tragedy from repeating itself. Here's a scary statistic, One in every three households in the US has a gun stored someplace in their home. Some years back, I had a human friend who lost his only child to a gun. Two children, each 12 years of age and who were both raised around guns and hunting. were playing with an unsecured gun when it accidentally discharged. It killed my friend's son instantly. You cannot assume that just because a child is raised around guns, that they'll always be safe. "The Brooklynn Mae Mohler Foundation is committed to ending senseless child deaths through education of responsible gun ownership and empowering parents to ask about guns where their children visit."
I can't even imagine the trauma that child suffered knowing, even accidentally, that he took his friend's life. It's something he'll carry with him forever. How many more stories are there just like this one? How many kids have to die or lose a friend because someone was careless about their gun.
If you have children or grandchildren that come to visit, be sure and ask the families of anyone they plan to visit, if there is a gun in the home and where/how is it stored. Secure storage of every weapon is vital to the safety of all children and is the responsibility of the gun owner. The life of one innocent child is not worth challenging the odds of possibility. There are many ways to secure a firearm, that still allow for fast access, and there is no excuse to place easy access of your firearm above that of child safety. Please be sure to ask everyone whose home your child visits, "Are there any unsecured guns in the home?"
How to observe this important day? Play it SAFE.
S = Secure all firearms in the home.
A = Ask the question about unsecured firearms in every home your child/grandchild visits.
F = Frequently talk to your kids about the dangers of firearms
E = Educate and Empower others to be SAFE.
National Safe Day was approved by the Registrar at the National Day Calendar, 2016. On June 4, 2013, Brooklyn Mae Mohler was the victim of a preventable shooting due to an unsecured firearm in a friend's home. She was just 13 years old.
See you back here tomorrow, I hope, for a cheerier blog! Until then, I wish you safety and
Peace.