Firearm safety program planned for Daniel Island

Leaders from across the City, the region, and even the state will be descending upon Daniel Island’s Providence Baptist Church on Thursday, October 20 at 7 p.m. for a panel discussion on gun safety, accident prevention and our youth.

The program, tentatively titled “Keeping our Kids Safe: Our Rights and Our Responsibility,” is being spearheaded by leaders from statewide gun safety advocacy non-profit Gun Sense S.C., a grassroots non-profit with a mission of “(addressing) the public health crisis of gun violence by educating citizens, building awareness, and supporting non-partisan legislation.”

Next Thursday’s event will focus on the education and awareness-building arms of the organization’s mission, and will be headed up by Gun Sense S.C. volunteer and longtime Daniel Island pastor Rev. Don Flowers of Providence Baptist Church. The highlight of the evening promises to be a multi-disciplinary panel discussion focused on the steps each of us can take to educate the youth in our community on the dangers of firearms, and on what concrete steps families can take to increase awareness in their children.

The 75-minute discussion will be led by a panel featuring representatives from the law enforcement, medical and mental health, and faith-based community who have accepted the challenge of addressing issues of gun violence in our community. Rev. Flowers himself will lead the discussion.

“We’re very active in our children’s lives here on Daniel Island,” says Daniel Island-based Gun Sense S.C. member and parent Jacqueline Gowe. “Parents are focused on making their children safe in so many ways, their education, keeping them physically fit, monitoring their online and cell phone usage…We just see this as a natural extension of that mindset, but when it comes to guns, this might be the most important area where we can take steps to protect our kids.”

The event won’t be about taking anyone’s guns away or even legislation, insists Gowe. Instead it will focus on kids, how to keep them safe from gun violence, and how parents can talk to kids about the issues involved.

“We want kids to also be able to give themselves permission to ask questions at school, around town, about guns as they relate to their safety,” continues Gowe.

The Thursday, Oct. 20 Gun Sense S.C. discussion to be held at Providence Baptist Church is free to attend and open to all. The event begins at 7 p.m.

The Providence Baptist Church is located at 294 Seven Farms Drive, Daniel Island. You can reach them by phone at (843) 971-5275 or online at www.providencecharleston.org. For more information on Gun Sense S.C., see their website at www.gunsensesc.org.