Project ChildSafe Hosts Webinar For Parents
July 14, NSSF, Project ChildSafe and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) hosted a Facebook Live webinar to help parents of teens recognize signs their children may be facing mental health challenges.
Titled, “Understanding Youth Mental Health and Preventing Unauthorized Access to Firearms,” the program featured a panel discussion, moderated by NSSF President and CEO Joe Bartozzi. Bartozzi was joined by Dr. Doreen Marshall, AFSP VP of mission engagement, and Dr. Sherry Molock, associate professor of clinical psychology at George Washington University.
The events of the past year — added stressors of schools being shut down for extended periods of time, coupled with record firearm sales — prompted this discussion on the necessity to safely secure firearms when not in use.
Bartozzi shared the overarching goal of the webinar.
“We’re really proud of our relationship with AFSP, and we were pleased to offer our expertise with safe storage options for some of the more common forms of lethal means — the goal being to help identify which options might work best for particular situations,” he said.
The webinar is an extension of a broader education effort by NSSF, Project ChildSafe and AFSP. Last year, the three organizations combined to create a downloadable Parents Guide to help parents understand youth mental health and preventing unauthorized access to firearms.
“This resource is designed to help parents (a.) identify the warning signs their child might be experiencing some mental health challenges; (b.) understand how to respond to those signs; and (c.) help parents create a safer home environment by preventing access to lethal means by someone who is experiencing those challenges,” Bartozzi shared.
The webinar can be viewed here: https://fb.watch/6M2PlIsMiX/
For additional information and resources, visit projectchildsafe.org/parents-resources.
