A group of mothers and father gathered at Saint Sabina Church Thursday to announce new initiative to help other families dealing with trauma, grief, and loss brought about by gun violence.
“It’s been almost a year since my brother’s death, but some days I feel like I have to pull myself out of a grave to even function,” said Latonya Orange.
Orange is part of the support group Purpose Over Pain. Members of the group launched a new crisis hotline for families impacted by gun violence.
“We want to be there when people are grieving, when they’re going through anxiety, feeling all alone,” said Pamela Bosley, co-founder of Purpose Over Pain. "We’re here you’re not alone and know that you can call that number and we’ll be here on the other end,” she said.
The crisis hotline is available 24 hours on the weekends. Anyone can call and talk to a responder who can help them cope with the tragedy and guide them to resources.
“An important thing is having somebody you can talk too who has walked in your shoes,” said Father Michael Pfleger.
“This hotline is needed in our community to help families like mine,” said Orange.
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“Having this hotline will help someone else,” said Kimberly Porter. “There’s nothing, but great in that to be able to give someone else a chance that we didn’t have.”
The hotline is staffed with two responders each weekend. Celeste Campbell is one of them. She lost her son to gun violence in 2016.
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“I went through counseling every week for three years,” she said. “It didn’t help me but being with other mothers who knows exactly how it feels when a piece of your heart has been broken it helped me get through this.”
Campbell spent the past six months training on the phone but said what had to live through is something you can’t prepare for. She’s hoping other mothers will reach out for support.
“Your heart is broken and when you don’t have anybody to talk to we are here,” she said. “We are here, we will be that listening ear.”
The crisis hotline goes live Friday. The number to call is 872-3- CRISIS (872-327-4747). The hotline operates from 7pm Friday to 7pm Sunday.
