Wear Orange event addresses gun safety, remembers those fallen to gunfire

ROSEVILLE — While the Fourth of July is a day for picnics and celebrations, the holiday is painful for Pam Leidlein.

It’s the day her daughter, Michelle Packard, 34, was killed by gunfire.

On July 4, 2012, Packard was at a fireworks event with her fiancé and his young daughter in the Lansing area. Packard was waiting for the show to begin when all of a sudden she fell over.

“Her fiancé thought she had a seizure,” said Leidlein, who was not at the event. Because Packard was unconscious, she was taken to a local hospital where doctors determined that she had been shot by a firearm.

“She was struck by a stray bullet,” said Leidlein, a retired educator who resides in Macomb Township. “It went into her brain. Everyone was shocked it was a bullet.”

Packard was placed on life support and “we had to make the decision” to take her off life support. According to Leidlein, police determined the bullet that struck her daughter came from someone who shot a firearm into the air in celebration of July 4. The gun was not aimed at her.

“They think it came from a mile away. They never found out who did it. It still affects me every day,” Leidlein said, adding that when her other daughter, Elyse, turned 40, she told her mom, “I’m turning 40, but Michelle is forever 34.”

Leidlein works with Be Smart, and on June 3, she shared her story to those who attended the Macomb County Wear Orange event held from 1 to 4 p.m. at Veteran’s Memorial Park in Roseville. The Be Smart campaign was launched in 2015 to promote responsible gun ownership in order to reduce child gun deaths. For more information, visit besmartforkids.org.

As part of Wear Orange Weekend and National Gun Violence Awareness Day, volunteers with the Macomb County chapter of Moms Demand Action in Michigan hosted the event to honor the lives of those affected by gun violence and elevate gun violence prevention efforts nationwide.

The event was held in partnership with the Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, and attendees were encouraged to wear orange clothing. The event included a Wear Orange Proclamation Ceremony, a peace walk and the opportunity to “Chalk About Gun Violence” by writing gun safety messages with chalk around the park. Those who lost a loved one to gun violence were asked to bring a picture to share. Free gun locks also were distributed.

Wear Orange originated June 2, 2015, on what would have been Hadiya Pendleton’s 18th birthday. The Chicago resident was shot and killed in 2013 when out with friends. Wear Orange honors Pendleton and the individuals who are shot and killed every day in America, the wounded and those who witness acts of gun violence.

“Over 120 people are killed daily by gun violence, and 200 are wounded,” said Amanda Angst, the local group lead for Moms Demand Action Macomb County. “These numbers are important because they’re staggering. It means hundreds of lives are being lost and impacted across our country. No community is immune. There are no boundaries.”

Moms Demand Action — which has chapters across the country — says it works to pass stronger gun laws, promotes responsible gun storage and works in the community to encourage responsible gun ownership.

Gun violence not only includes firearms used for criminal acts and to kill or injure others, but also those who commit suicide. There is the argument that gun laws won’t stop a criminal from using a firearm or a mentally unstable person from committing a mass shooting.

“The biggest issue is easy access to firearms. There is no one solution to ending gun violence. Everyone has a role to play in ending gun violence and educating each other,” Angst said.

Moms Demand Action says it is not trying to take away the right to own firearms for law-abiding citizens.

“We support the Second Amendment,” Angst said. “We welcome gun owners to the table to have this conversation.”

Several who gathered shared personal stories of gun violence. Christopher Ford, constituent relations for the office of Sen. Veronica Klinefelt, D-Eastpointe, remembered a cousin “who lost his life to gun violence roughly 10 years ago.”

“He went to a CVS and got a Valentine’s Day gift for his girlfriend. He walked out to the parking lot and he got shot. He didn’t even make it to the hospital,” Ford said. “It doesn’t hit you until it hits home, when you have a family member that’s affected.”

Ford brought up the 2017 Las Vegas shooting in which 60 people were killed and hundreds more injured.

“There is not enough conversation about gun injuries. We talk about deaths, but (the injured) have life-lasting injuries, mental health injuries, physical injuries,” Ford said.

James Williams, faith-based program manager/special projects manager with Crime Stoppers of Michigan, based in Southfield, reminded others that they can anonymously report information on crime at 1-800-SPEAK-UP. He also touched upon the lasting effect gun violence has on families.

“Those families are changed forever,” Williams said. “Even in the cases where the information comes forward and the person that was responsible is arrested and convicted and goes to jail, that still doesn’t bring closure to a family who sits at the Thanksgiving table with an empty seat.”

Also present at Wear Orange were several local organizations, including the Roseville Neighborhood Watch Group, Macomb County Community Mental Health and Live Rite Structured Recovery Corp.