NORFOLK, Va. — Survivors of gun violence and the healthcare workers who work every day to save lives shared their stories outside of Sentara Norfolk General Hospital as part of National Gun Violence Awareness Day.
According to the National Gun Violence Archive, more than 43,000 people died from a gunshot last year.
The day began with a moment of thanks from Landyn Davis' family that their 9-year-old son came out of the hospital alive.
"We are beyond thankful to the doctors, nurses, Safer Futures and staff at CHKD who diligently worked to save our son and give him another chance at life," said Landyn's mother, Emily Rigsby.
It ended with a poem remembering 17-year-old Jordan Snipes, who did not have the same fate.
"Your big sister/mom will love you forever and ever and ever," said his older sister Day Snipes.
Day works at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. She calls him a gentle giant who loved food and dreamed of being a park ranger.
"The day after he passed, I applied to nursing school and I began to fulfill my purpose, letting his life and light never be in vain," she told the crowd, all wearing orange to mark the day.
Jordan was shot and killed in February of last year, just four months before he was supposed to graduate from Lake Taylor High School.
"But what about those who don’t have my strength? Who can’t move on or whose hearts are still beating but minds and bodies are left lost," said Day.
The American Public Health Association calls gun violence the leading cause of premature death in the U.S.
"On any given day, you can turn on the news and hear multiple breaking news reports about the Tidewater region," said Angela Parker, team coordinator with Sentara Norfolk General’s Foresight Violence Prevention Program.
At Sentara Norfolk General, doctors and nurses treated nearly 580 patients who’d been shot, stabbed or assaulted in 2023.
"No matter what they see coming through those doors, they jump into action and save these lives every single day," said Sentara Norfolk General Hospital COO Chris Pierson.
CHKD treated 22 children for gunshot wounds. Two of them died despite efforts to save them. So far this year, CHKD has treated six children for gunshot wounds. One of those children died.
That is 22 injuries that were preventable and completely unnecessary," said Kate Davenport, a Pediatric Surgeon and Trauma Medical Director for CHKD.
She sees the trauma firsthand when a victim arrives at the hospital.
"The prevalence of firearm injuries and death in teens and children is increasing year over year. It's now the number one cause of death in children. It surpassed motor vehicle accidents years ago," she said.
Despite those numbers, Pierson said they are seeing a positive trend.
"We are on track this year when you look at our patients coming into to have less violent injuries than we did in 2023. And in 2023, we had less injuries than we did in 2022," he said. "While these numbers are still unacceptably high, I believe that all the efforts from people like you are working."
That trauma doesn’t end when families leave the hospital. That’s why both Sentara Health and CHKD started programs to help survivors rebuild their lives in the aftermath.
"The emotional and mental health impact can be far long-lasting than the physical injuries," said Kamron Blue, Safer Futures Program Coordinator.
Both Safer Futures and Foresight Violence Prevention programs help survivors by assisting with housing and basic needs, food insecurity, education and referrals to community-based services.
Landyn Davis’ family has been holding their son tighter than ever since he was shot in the head in February and finally released from the hospital in May.
"You never think it’ll happen to you," said Landyn's mother Emily Rigsby. "Just hearing other people's stories about how their loved ones may not have made it, it's very heartbreaking and touching. It makes you feel a little sense of guilt because, you know, your loved one is still here."
Landyn's father, Steven Davis, said knowing that it’s still happening to other children, like the 15-year-old girl who was shot outside of a Virginia Beach carnival, makes them want to speak out even more.
"It makes me mad because kids can't be kids anymore. It happened at a carnival. You're supposed to go to a carnival to have fun, not to get involved in something tragic like that," he said. "These incidents that are happening every day are ruining everybody’s life."