LAUREL, Del. — Community leaders, residents, and advocates gathered in Laurel on Friday to mark National Gun Violence Awareness Day, honoring victims of gun violence while highlighting ongoing efforts to prevent future tragedies.
The event centered on the memories of two Laurel High School students, Corey Mumford and Kylee Robinson, who were killed by gun violence in 2023.
As attendees gathered wearing orange — the color associated with gun violence awareness — organizations Operation West Laurel and End Community Violence Now unveiled portraits of Mumford and Robinson. The paintings will be displayed at Laurel High School.
Among those reflecting on the loss was Representative Tim Dukes, who spoke about the lasting impact of these tragedies.
"I went to [Corey's] funeral. I stood above his casket, and I just said, 'This is not fair’. I have walked to his grave a few times. I stood there and said, ‘This isn't right’. I still keep, in my sun visor in my vehicle, the picture from his funeral."
Speakers throughout the event remembered those lost to gun violence while urging continued action to make communities safer.
"Kylee and Corey, along with many others, should be here today. Until you get to the point of zero homicides, zero suicides, zero senseless deaths, there is work to be done," Vaughn Bond, Deputy Secretary for Safety and Homeland Security with the State of Delaware, said.
Organizers also unveiled two community gardens that local teenagers will help maintain. The gardens are part of Operation West Laurel’s broader efforts to provide positive opportunities and outlets for young people.
"Just ways to get whatever they may have bottled up inside, outside of them, in a positive way, in a positive manner. So they don't have it bottled up, and they take it out as anger, or it comes out in an action that may have them behind bars for the rest of their life," Cammerin Norwood said.
Friday also marked the beginning of Wear Orange Weekend, a national campaign that encourages people to wear orange to raise awareness about the impact of gun violence on communities across the country.
