Volunteers needed in church’s effort to find new use for unwanted guns

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A local church is asking for volunteers to help get unwanted guns off the streets and find new uses for them.

The Guns to Gardens Safe Surrender event is on Oct. 12. The goal is to take unwanted guns off the streets and turn them into garden tools or jewelry.

“We definitely want to put the garden tools to use here in our garden,” Central Presbyterian Church Rev. Jenny Wells said.

The event will happen in the parking lot surrounding the garden outside the church. Rev. Wells said people can surrender their unwanted guns – “safely, responsibly and anonymously.”

Then, Guns to Gardens volunteers will remove and dismantle the guns — getting them ready to be turned into garden tools or kitchen utensils.

“Folks will bring their firearms, unloaded,” Wells said. “We will have individuals who will inspect them to make sure they’re unloaded and then they will be dismantled by being cut apart with a chop saw, on-site.”

The church is partnering with local blacksmith George Rousis. He owns Organic Iron Concepts. This artist has an idea of what they’ll create.

“I would imagine like little hand shovels,” Rousis said.

He’s taken railroad tracks and rebar — breathing new life into them.

“This is a ‘rebar-b-que fork,” Rousis said.

He’s also made hooks, rings and spoons.

Come October, he’ll turn firearms into garden tools.

“We will make the guns unusable by somehow chopping them with a chop saw or I don’t know, maybe, heating them and forging the barrel shut,” Rousis said. “Depending on what the whole components made out of.”

This garden supplies produce for the food pantry operated out of the church. Wells says they serve about 70 households every week.

“Any opportunity that we have to grow more fruits and vegetables that can feed the neighborhood. I think that’s what people really need.” Wells said.

“We want to move from there being so much violence in the neighborhood, in our community, in Kansas City, to making sure people have food on their table.”

To pull off the event they need helping hands — greeters, gun inspectors and counselors.

Volunteers need to attend one training session in September — where you’ll learn about dismantling a gun.

Two training opportunities will include a tool dismantling demonstration and a meal:
Monday, September 16, 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
Wednesday, September 18, 6 -9 p.m.

Volunteers only need to attend one training session.

Interested volunteers can also sign up by emailing the church office: churchoffice@centralpreskc.org .

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