Think you can’t make a difference on a neighborhood level? Don’t be silly. Of course you can.
Badass-Woman-Next-Door Activist: Erica Lawrence
Location: Northshore Park, The Woodlands, Texas
Project: The Woodlands’ First Annual Wear Orange Event
as part of National Gun Violence Awareness Day
Date Held: June 8, 2019
STYLED BY SHE’S LEGEND TEAM
ART DIRECTION BY WOODLANDS CREATIVES
How did you get involved in Moms Demand Action? I joined Moms Demand Action as a New Year’s resolution at the beginning of 2018. My family had just relocated to The Woodlands, Texas, from Dallas-Fort Worth, where we had been for 12 years, and I didn’t know anyone in the area. Donald Trump had just stolen the election/presidency, and I needed to channel some energy into activism. My husband is the one who suggested Moms Demand Action because he follows Shannon Watts on Twitter and is a supporter of the organization. He suggested that I might be able to find other “mommy friends.” I searched for a local event, found one, went to a monthly meeting, met some other volunteers and instantly found a connection.
How long did it take for you to plan the Wear Orange event? We started planning in April.
How many volunteers did you have for the event? About 30 local Moms Demand Action volunteers/active supporters came out to work the Wear Orange event. We also had some community partners volunteer for the event, including Conroe ISD Police Department, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Montgomery County Women’s Center, Children’s Books on Wheels, League of Women Voters, artist Carol Wells, DJ music services by Jaunetta Cooper and chef Dolores Allen.
What elements did you incorporate into the event and why? The idea of the National Wear Orange team was to make this year’s event centered around beautification projects for the community. These projects could include planting trees or volunteering with groups in the area that need extra help, such as homeless shelters or women’s centers. For our event, we included a blood drive because, statistically, those with gunshot wounds need 10 times more blood transfusions than any other trauma victim. In addition, blood donations decrease an average of 20% during the summer because school is out. We had 18 donors donate a total of 22 blood products. Other people couldn’t donate on the day of the event but did later.
How did you choose your speakers? Jane Winter, local group leader, is a gun violence survivor. Rama Mulukutla is a physician in The Woodlands. John Brandon Pierre is a veteran combat fighter. Jacob Castillo is a Giffords Courage fellow. Cameron Waller is with March for Our Lives. And Rebecca Fox is with Students Demand Action.
How many people attended The Woodlands event? We had approximately 110 adult guests sign in (and another approximately 40 who missed the sign-in table) plus children. Children were not included in the count.
Any push back from the community either before the event or during the event? On the day of the event, we had two counter-protesters in attendance. They didn’t speak to us, although they walked by once with a pro-gun sign. We didn’t engage them. •
National Gun Violence Awareness Day
The first National Gun Violence Awareness Day was held in 2015. The color orange has become associated with the day in part because it was Hadiya Pendleton’s favorite color. Pendleton was killed in Chicago at the age of 15, one week after performing at the 2013 inaugural parade honoring President Barack Obama’s re-election.
Interested in finding Mom’s Demand Action events in your community? Search online at momsdemandaction.org/events or text JOIN to 644-33.