How can I support Ceasefire Northwest?
You can volunteer, join a subgroup, partner with us, advocate for prevention education in your community, or donate to support outreach and materials. There are many ways to contribute, regardless of background.

Are staff paid?
No. Ceasefire Northwest is currently an all-volunteer organization. Donations support direct program costs such as materials, transportation, and outreach.

How can my school or organization partner with you?
Visit our “Contact” page to reach out. We work with schools, health systems, community groups, and faith organizations to tailor education to local needs.

Every parent wants their child to come home safe. What many parents don’t realize is that their child’s safety increasingly depends not only on adults—but on the knowledge and awareness of the other young people around them.

Between the ages of 12 and 17, one in six adolescents seriously considers suicide. Most young people who struggle do not reach out to adults first. They confide in friends, teammates, and classmates. In those moments, the difference between tragedy and intervention often depends on whether another student recognizes warning signs and knows what to do next.

Firearm injury prevention education helps students understand:

• How mental health crises can escalate when firearms are accessible

• What warning signs of suicide and violence look like in peers

• How to respond safely and responsibly when they are worried about someone

• When and how to involve trusted adults

For parents, this is deeply personal. Your child’s safety depends on whether the students around them are prepared.

Parents are also members of families and communities. Nearly 40% of people experience a significant mental health disorder at some point in their lives, and crises don’t announce themselves in advance. In Washington State, where roughly three-quarters of firearm deaths are suicides, understanding warning signs, safe storage, and existing laws is lifesaving knowledge—for adults as well as youth.

What parents can do:

• Ask your child’s school or district to include firearm injury prevention in health education

• Support school administrators and teachers who want evidence-based, nonpartisan curriculum

• Talk with other parents, caregivers, and grandparents about why this education matters

• Advocate so that all students—not just your own—have access to this knowledge

Creating safer schools means creating an informed community around every child.

Students are often the first to notice when something is wrong.

You see changes in your friends before adults do. You hear comments that signal distress. You know who’s struggling. That puts students in a unique position—not to fix problems, but to recognize risk and take responsible action.

Firearm injury prevention education gives students tools they deserve:

• How to recognize warning signs of suicide or escalating conflict

• How firearm access increases risk during emotional crises

• What steps are safe and appropriate when you’re worried about someone

• How to involve trusted adults without fear or stigma

This education isn’t about blame or fear. It’s about being prepared when real life gets complicated.

What students can do:

• Ask your school to include firearm injury prevention education in health classes

• Support peers who speak up about safety and mental health

• Share what you’ve learned with friends, siblings, and teammates

• Help create a culture where safety, care, and responsibility are normal conversations

Being informed isn’t political, it’s protective. And protection starts with you.

Health care providers see the consequences of firearm injury, often when it is already too late. Emergency departments, clinics, and mental health settings bear the weight of preventable harm every day.

Firearm injury prevention education in schools addresses risk upstream, before crisis turns into catastrophe.

From a public health perspective, this education:

• Reinforces evidence that means safety reduces suicide risk

• Supports clinical counseling on safe storage and temporary firearm transfer

• Normalizes conversations about firearm risk and mental health

• Builds health literacy long before students become patients

Ceasefire Northwest’s approach mirrors clinical best practices: respectful, evidence-based, and focused on risk—not ideology.

What Health Care Providers can do:

• Advocate for firearm injury prevention education in schools and communities

• Partner with educators to support evidence-based curriculum

• Encourage families to support prevention education as part of health literacy

• Lend your professional credibility to normalize prevention-focused conversations

Prevention doesn’t end at the clinic door. It starts where people learn.

Washington State has enacted strong firearm safety laws, yet firearm suicides and homicides continue to rise. This makes one reality clear: laws alone are not enough.

Public health challenges require education, awareness, and cultural change. Firearm injury prevention education is foundational infrastructure—just like driver’s education or public health campaigns on tobacco and seatbelts.

This education:

• Complements existing laws rather than replacing them

• Reduces polarization by focusing on shared safety goals

• Builds informed, resilient communities over time

• Creates lasting impact by reaching people early and consistently

What leaders can do:

• Support the inclusion of firearm injury prevention education in school curricula

• Champion nonpartisan, evidence-based approaches to community safety

• Encourage partnerships between schools, health professionals, and community groups

• Help ensure this education reaches not just students, but families and adults as well

Building a safer society requires more than policy. It requires knowledge shared widely, early, and often.

What is firearm injury prevention education?
Firearm injury prevention education helps people understand how and why firearm-related harm occurs, what increases risk, and what reduces it. Topics include suicide risk, accidental injury, safe storage, temporary firearm transfer, recognizing warning signs, and knowing when to involve trusted adults or professionals.

Do you teach students about gun laws?
Yes. Our program includes education about relevant Washington State firearm laws as they relate to safety in students’ lives and communities. We do not advocate for or against firearms or policies; our focus is on practical knowledge, informed decision-making, and reducing the risk of injury.

Are you pro- or anti-gun?
Neither. Ceasefire Northwest is nonpartisan and does not encourage or discourage firearm ownership. Our sole focus is on safety—promoting knowledge and conversations that help individuals, families, and communities reduce the risk of firearm injury.

Is the curriculum age-appropriate?
Yes. All materials are designed for high school students and are aligned with existing health education standards. Content is presented thoughtfully, without graphic material or fear-based messaging.

Do you teach students how to use firearms?
No. We do not teach firearm operation or handling. Our focus is on understanding risk, prevention, and safety—not technical firearm use.

Is there evidence that education can reduce firearm injury?
Research consistently shows that education around means safety, suicide risk, and safe storage can reduce harm—especially suicide. Education also supports clinical and community-based prevention efforts by increasing awareness and preparedness.

Why focus on education when laws already exist?
Washington State has strong firearm safety laws, yet firearm deaths continue to rise. This shows that laws alone are not enough. Public health challenges require education, skills, and cultural change alongside policy.