WORCESTER, Mass. — Local youth at the Regional Environmental Council spent Saturday turning old, destroyed guns into garden tools.
The partnership between UMass Memorial Health's annual gun buyback program and Guns 2 Gardens looks to take unwanted guns off the streets. The tools forged will then be used in local gardens to harvest fruits and vegetables for the community.
Next week, communities in Worcester County will host their annual gun buybacks. Residents will be able to drop off unwanted guns to a number of local police stations, as well as City Welding in Worcester, where the firearms will be crushed. Those who bring firearms will receive grocery store gift cards based on the gun model.
"The importance of this initiative is to recognize that we are in control of the guns that might threaten our communities, and that we can harness the will to do good by people in the community that want to turn these tools into tools that actually nourish people," said John Hayden, founder of Guns 2 Gardens Massachusetts.
UMass Memorial Health provided some key things to know ahead of the day.
- Anonymity ensured
- Amnesty granted during time of event
- No gun registration required for Worcester County residents
- Non-operable guns, ammunition, and firearm accessories will also be accepted (no gift cards are issued for these items)
- All guns surrendered must be unloaded and wrapped or contained in a bag
- All collected firearms are destroyed at City Welding and Sheet Fabrication by the end of the event