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TUKWILA, Wash. -- They are the survivors of fallen police officers. On Saturday, they came from around the state to be together in Tukwilla at the Seattle Police Range, and to learn more about one of the most important tools used by police officers.
“I have guns around the house and a son who has never shot a gun,” said Jeannie Lone, the organizer of the event. “I thought, what if we created a survivors day, where people could bring their guns and feel confident about firing them and some of the kids could learn to shoot too.”
Seattle Police Officer Steve Redmond, said, since the gun is such an important part of the police culture, it’s important that the officer’s family also learn about that as well.
“It’s a day we could get some people out here to teach them basic aspects of gun safety, and maybe shoot some guns they have around the house, that they`ve never shot before,” said Redmond. “And for kids, we could introduce them to firearm safety.”
Gina Vinecourt's father, Kitsap County Deputy Dennis Allred, was shot and killed in the line of duty in 1978. She got the chance to fire her father’s revolver on the range and admitted it was emotional, knowing her father was also killed by the same model of gun.
“Today`s actually been kind of tough just to realize someone intentionally used that weapon to hurt someone,” said Vinecourt. “I`m struggling with that.”
“I know it`s not the tool. It's not the gun. It's the person holding it and their intent.”
There have been several events in the past for spouses of fallen officers, but Saturday’s event was the first one including whole families.