King County offering free lock boxes for National Gun Violence Awareness Day

To mark National Gun Violence Awareness Day on Friday, Public Health — Seattle and King County announced they will be giving away free gun lock boxes.

Kicking off the county’s “Wear Orange” Weekend, the county is setting up five community lock box giveaway events.

Gun violence rising on Washington state highways

“Gun violence is now the leading cause of death for children and teens in the U.S.,” said Eleuthera Lisch, Public Health’s regional gun violence program director. “Over the past three years, we have seen an uptick in the number of firearm-related injuries and deaths in King County, in places where we all live, play and learn. Gun violence is not inevitable, it is preventable, and in our region, we recognize that gun violence is a public health emergency. We each have a role in ending it.”

The events include:

• Seattle Lockbox Giveaway, hosted with Community Passageways   
  Friday, June 2, 2023 | 10:00 am to 11:30 am I Parking Lot 23^rd Ave & Jackson Street, Seattle
• Skyway Lockbox Giveaway, hosted with Urban Family  
  Friday, June 2, 2023 | 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm | Grocery Outlet parking lot – 11445 69th Pl S, Seattle
• Kent Lockbox Giveaway, hosted with Community Passageways 
  Friday, June 2, 2023 | 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm | City Hall Square – 220 4th Ave S, Kent
• White Center Lockbox Giveaway, hosted with YMCA Alive and Free 
  Friday, June 2, 2023 | 4:00 pm to 5:30 pm | Greenbridge Plaza – 9800 8th Avenue SW, Seattle
• Rainier Beach Lockbox Giveaway, hosted with Rainer Vista Boys & Girls Club – SE Safety Network
  Friday, June 2, 2023 | 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm | Safeway parking lot – 9262 Rainier Ave S, Seattle

Each event will feature remarks from community safety experts and local government leaders, gun safety education, and free handgun lockbox giveaways.

You can learn more about King County’s “Lock it Up” program on their website here.