SUFFOLK, Va. — Youth community group, Project Power, brought the community together in a walk to take a stand against gun violence.
This comes after a double shooting Tuesday morning and an officer-involved shooting last week.
One mother says the walk was much needed.
"I want to see an end to gun violence," Carteisha Gates, a Suffolk mother, said. "I want them to grow up and be able to grow up and live their life instead of it ending to gun violence."
With posters in hand, the Suffolk mother says it was vital to bring her young daughters to the walk for an issue that's plaguing communities.
"The posters say 'Enough. Stop the Gun Violence.' It’s making a tragedy for families," Gates said.
"I came out here with my mom to show posters and talk about how to stop gun violence," Gates young daughter, Arriana, said.
So far this year, Suffolk has had 1 homicide. Last year, the city had 11 homicides.
That’s relatively low compared to the number of homicides in other Hampton Roads cities.
Suffolk's interim police chief James Danny Buie also walked with the community with his 7-year-old grandson.
"I picked my grandson up from the bus stop and said there’s not a better place to bring him for him to realize that gun violence in our city and nation is real, and people die from it every day," Buie said.
"What needs to be done to combat gun violence or decrease it?" News 3's Leondra Head asked Chief Buie.
"I’ve never known a gun to jump off a table and shoot somebody," Buie said. "We need to teach our youth that when you pull the trigger that it's going to travel until something stops it. Whether it be a 4-year-old child or a 30-year-old man."
The organizer of Project Power, Tray Burch, says his students at Lakeland High School inspired him to put on the walk.
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He says the ripple effects of violence hit him in high school.
"I went to Lakeland High School and one of my classmates," Burch said. "I’m a former graduate, and one of my classmates passed away due to gun violence. So I’ve had it hit home pretty close."
Suffolk Interim Police Chief says recommends more residents report crime and says you can remain anonymous to when reporting.
