Trillium Health Resources is delivering 1,000 gun locks to all departments of social services within its 28-county region. 

They will be distributed to families who own firearms along with education about gun safety.

According to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, 116 North Carolina children died of a firearm related injury in 2021. 

Represented in the gallery, from left, are the DSS agencies of Beaufort, Carteret, Gates and Northampton:

• Click to open image! Click to open image!
• Click to open image! Click to open image!
• Click to open image! Click to open image!
• Click to open image! Click to open image!
•  

Firearms are the leading cause of injury for children in North Carolina. 

Trillium is working to lower this statistic through this initiative.

“Staff in our DSS offices are crucial points of contact for many families,” said Trillium Head of Social Services Engagement Sean Kenny. “We thank them for this partnership to educate our communities on safe gun ownership to reduce tragic injuries to children. We also know that by restricting access to firearms we can lessen instances of successful suicide attempts.” 

Trillium’s One Community program started during the coronavirus pandemic to inform people of resources available for mental health services. 

One Community staff now concentrate on member outreach through health literacy and awareness.