NSSF Launches Project ChildSafe Communities

Yesterday, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), along with Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin, Oklahoma City leaders and law enforcement officials, launched Project ChildSafe Communities in Oklahoma’s Capitol, kicking off a national initiative designed to encourage responsible firearm ownership with an emphasis on secure firearm storage. The event marked the launch in Oklahoma City – the first event in the nation under the initiative – starting a year-long, community-led effort that is, among other goals, “Aiming for Zero” firearm accidents.

Project ChildSafe Communities is supported by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and NSSF, which has sponsored Project ChildSafe since 1999. BJA awarded NSSF a two-year, $2.4 million grant to help promote additional firearm safety efforts on a national level by creating Project ChildSafe Communities in key cities around the country.

The initiative is also partnering with several local organizations representing conservation groups, mental health and suicide prevention advocates, veterans, retailers and hunting and shooting groups to help share messages and information about responsible firearm storage.

Their collective efforts will be backed up by community-wide messaging that that will appear in social media, in an upcoming public service announcement on TV and radio, and on billboards around the Capitol City region.

Through partnerships with more than 15,000 local law enforcement agencies and more than 3,400 organizational supporters, Project ChildSafe has helped educate firearm owners on the importance of gun safety, while distributing more than 37 million free firearm safety kits—which include a free gun lock—to communities in all 50 states and the U.S. territories.

For more information on Project ChildSafe Communities and how to get involved, visit projectchildsafe.org.