I’ve been looking for inspiration this week. Topics to brighten my day and cheer up my mood.
Recently, I learned about a local organization called RAWTools Buffalo that takes guns off the street and upcycles them into garden tools. I spoke to the two regional chapter orchestrators, Mark Stradley and Steve Johnson, who had a very interesting story to tell.
Mark told me that five years ago, he and his wife adopted a their first child, from India. One of their first thoughts was what it was going to be like bringing up a child of a different nationality and family heritage? As we witness so much unrest in the country, what would the the world look like for their son?
“We live in the University District,” said Mark. “I’ve been a school counselor for the Buffalo Public School System for ten years. We’ve lost students to gun violence, including suicide. I felt that I wanted to do something. I ended up going to an event in Rochester, where Mike Martin of RAWtools was speaking and doing a demonstration. Mike founded RAWtools in Colorado Springs. I reached out to him after the event, and he got right back to me. I wanted to learn more about disarming firearms and turning them into art and garden tools.”
Mark ended up running the idea past his friend, Steve Johnson (Lead Pastor, Anchor Church) who immediately understood the implications of the project. Together, the two set out for Colorado Springs in the summer of 2019, to meet with Mike and see if they could follow in a similar path. They ended up learning the trade of blacksmithing, thus the beginning of their journey towards founding a RAWtools chapter in Buffalo.
“We did an event in Colorado, and talked about peace on Indigenous Peoples Day,” said Steve. “We also did a demonstration where people that were impacted by gun violence got an opportunity to convert guns to garden tools. The guns that were donated were from suicides. There’s something empowering about taking a gun that has been used for violence and ensuring that it never takes another human life. For me, I want there to be healing in our own city. Grief sticks with us. RAWtools is a therapy to help with the grieving process.”
And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. (Isaiah 2:4).
If you’re wondering where Mark and Steve are sourcing their guns from, they just learned that a local judge is allowing the City of Tonawanda police department to disarm their stockpile of confiscated guns, which will be allocated to RAWtools Buffalo. These are guns that have been removed from the street.
“This is not political – we’re not trying to take people’s guns away,” agreed Mark and Steve.
“I grew up around guns,” said Steve. “My family owned guns in rural Indiana, so I understand. Most gun owners are reasonable people. When we tell gun owners what we’re doing, they get it. We believe that there can be a better future, where people aren’t killed in war, or through street violence.”
Mark and Steve conducted their first “demo” this past fall, and are excited to get things steamrolling again, despite setbacks caused by the pandemic. They bought a forge and an anvil, and are even eyeing a permanent location for their organization.
When the weather is nice, they plan of setting up on the front lawn of Garden Church Buffalo (2358 Delaware Avenue – near Hertel) where they will be teaming up with community gardeners. The idea is to upcycle the guns into garden tools, which will then be used to grow food for those in need.
Mark and Steve told me that it only takes around 4″-6″ from a gun barrel to make a tool. And now that they have a “truckload” of guns to dismantle, there should be plenty of garden tools to go around.
“There’s not much overhead to run this – a few propane tanks,” noted Mark and Steve. “The money that we raise by attending art festivals will go towards keeping the effort going. We’re not in it to make money – we believe that what we’re doing is the right thing. As far as we’re aware, we’re the only ones doing this around Buffalo.
Get connected: RawToolsBuffalo@gmail.com
I first learned of RAWTools Buffalo through The Awesome Foundation (Buffalo chapter) – a funder of the 501(c)(3) organization
If you or a loved one are struggling with suicidal thoughts, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741. Crisis Services 24 Hour Crisis Hotline serves Buffalo and Erie County: 716-834-3131 |
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