OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — This weekend, communities across the country will wear orange in support of National Gun Violence Awareness Day on June 3, including right here in West Michigan.
"Wear Orange Weekend" is a nationally celebrated weekend of events, and organizations like Everytown For Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action put on "Wear Orange" events all across the country right around the 3rd of June.
This year, a group in Holland felt even more inspired to host a local 'wear orange' event of their own, especially following the tragedy in Uvalde, Texas on May 24th.
"Wear Orange Holland" is taking place Sunday, June 5 from 2 to 4 p.m. at Centennial Park. Organizers are hoping all who come wear orange, the color hunters wear in the woods to protect themselves and others from guns.
The event is not just for show, there will also be opportunities to write to local representatives, make phone calls, send notes to affected by gun violence and learn about local organizations supporting schools in the area.
Coordinator Carolyn Buck says the event came together in a short time because so many people felt hopeless after the tragedy in Uvalde, Texas.
"It's so tragic, but like, what do you do? I think this sense of hopelessness and defeat was quite palatable and in my opinion, a lot of people saying 'what do we do?' I am of the disposition that the answer to that question is never nothing," Buck says. "It's really an awareness, participation, and then showing support and love for educators and community."
Any extra proceeds or donations from the event will also be given to a new non-profit in Ottawa County, called Opportunity Thrive, which supports mental and emotional health of educators, trauma-informed training and other resources to help local schools.
Buck also emphasized that "Wear Orange Holland" is a nonpartisan event.
"We're not talking about certain political parties or anything, it's just an opportunity to show up and say, hey, we just need to do better for our schools for each other for our community," she said. "We're writing letters to representatives from both parties. We're all saying it's not enough, like what we're doing is not enough. And even if we people at the event disagree about execution of policy, the point is, is that no one is disagreeing that something has to change."
Buck also said she and the other organizers of the event wanted to create a space for people to see that they're not alone in feeling upset or overwhelmed about what's happened across the country.
You can learn more about the event by clicking here.
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