Hi John—My name is Emily Cantrell and I joined the Alliance’s board three years ago. I have shared my story publicly over the years, and I’m sharing it again today in hopes you will consider donating a Giving Tuesday gift to the Alliance to help us reach our $25,000 goal.

I waited too long to get involved in efforts around gun responsibility. I never thought one person could help make a difference, but that mindset changed after I found myself front and center of our country’s deadliest mass shooting.

It was the night of Sunday, October 1, 2017, when a gunman fired more than 1,000 bullets from his 32nd floor suite in the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas. This man was targeting a crowd of concertgoers, which I was a part of. Fifty-eight incredible humans were fatally shot and never made it home that night. Nearly 900 others were injured. And for me, while I somehow escaped without a bullet in my body, there are times I feel like I have one in my head and my heart.

You do not need a bullet in your body to become a victim of gun violence. And let me tell you first hand that thoughts and prayers are not enough. We must take action.

Studies show that nearly every single American will know a victim of gun violence in their lifetime. Unless we make considerable changes around gun responsibility, there is a chance that you are going to have your own story to tell one day, like I am telling mine.

This is why I joined the Alliance for Gun Responsibility’s board—because I knew I needed to do my part to make sure we never have a new deadliest mass shooting. Since I joined the board, we have made remarkable strides, passing dozens of policies that keep guns out of dangerous hands, support community violence intervention, and more.

I’m asking because I know how important this work is.

[nondonors: You are an integral part of our success. We can’t do this work alone. Please make your first gift to the Alliance by midnight tonight to take advantage of the generous match opportunity and to ensure that we can continue our crucial gun violence prevention work next year. GT donors: You are an integral part of our success. Your support last Giving Tuesday was an essential part of our success this year. Please donate by midnight tonight to take advantage of the generous match opportunity and have your gift go twice as far. Other donors: You are an integral part of our success. We can’t do this work alone. Please donate by midnight tonight to take advantage of the generous match opportunity and to ensure that we can continue our crucial gun violence prevention work next year.]

Thank you,
Emily (she/her)