Gun Safe Surrender Event

Saturday, June 7, Parking Lot

12:30 – 3:30 p.m.

Guns to Gardens Turns Unwanted Guns into Garden Tools!  

First Baptist Church of Asheville, along with Circle of Mercy Congregation, Land of the Sky UCC, Asheville Friends, First Congregational United Church of Christ, Haywood Street Congregation, and Hood Huggers International, will offer a Gun Safe Surrender event on Saturday, June 7 in the church parking lot at 5 Oak Street, Asheville from 12:30-3:30 p.m.

Anyone may bring unwanted and unloaded guns to be dismantled and later made into garden tools.

The project is part of the nonpartisan “Guns to Gardens” movement which works to reduce gun violence by reducing the number of guns in homes and communities. Unwanted guns are dismantled and the leftover parts are forged into garden tools.

For the June 7th drive-through event, unloaded guns should be placed in the back seat of a car, trunk or the rear of a van. Skilled personnel will remove the firearms from vehicles and transfer them to a chop saw station. Trained volunteers will use power tools to make three cuts to the gun, according to guidelines from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The gun owner waits through this process and there is no transfer of firearm ownership. Once the gun is dismantled, it is no longer legally a gun. The owner can donate the leftover parts to be forged into garden tools.  While the Safe Surrender event is not a traditional gun “buy back,” the church will distribute available gift cards to gun owners for working guns only as a way to thank them for disposing of unwanted guns (until the gift cards run out). Guns must be unloaded and ammunition is not accepted.

With over 434 million guns in American, many of these guns are no longer wanted for a range of reasons: the gun owner may have children or grandchildren in the home; a hunter or other gun owner may have reached an age where they no longer feel that they can safely handle weapons; a gun may have been returned to family by the police after it was used in a suicide or accident; there may be conflict in a family or there may a family member with a serious illness. For whatever reason, Guns to Gardens provides a way to dispose of unwanted guns without returning them to the gun marketplace, where they could be used for future harm.

Over 48,000 Americans die every year from gun violence. Approximately 60% of the gun deaths are from suicide, followed by homicide, family violence, and unintentional shootings. A difficult moment can turn into a tragedy simply because a gun is nearby.

Details:

Guns to Gardens Safe Surrender Event

  • Held at First Baptist Church of Asheville, 5 Oak St., Asheville, NC 28801
  • Saturday, June 7, 12:30 -3:30 p.m..
  • Place unwanted guns in a vehicle trunk.
  • Guns must be unloaded. Gun donors are anonymous. No ammunition is accepted.

Thank you gift cards will be provided for working guns until they run out:

  • $50 – $200 depending on type of gun ($300 max per car).

For more information contact Stan Wilson (stan@rawtoolssouth.org)

If you would like donate click here.  An acknowledgement message can be sent to anyone you would like to honor with your donation (a mother, father, friend, or someone affected by gun violence).