Choose Love Movement held a fundraiser to celebrate the 16th birthday of Sandy Hook victim.

MIDDLEBURY, Conn. (WFSB) - A fundraiser took place today at Quassy Amusement Park to celebrate the birthday of Jesse Lewis who lost his life in the Sandy Hook shooting.

“Having a lot of fun” is the message Jesse Lewis left behind after his life was cut short following the sandy hook shooting, and that is what took place today as friends and community members gathered to celebrate what would have been his 16th birthday.

Jesse’s mother, Scartlett Lewis, started the “choose love movement” 10 years ago after sandy hook.

She says words like nurturing, healing, and love were meaningful lessons in Jesse’s life, and she knows that if the shooter had been able to give and receive “love” that this tragedy might not have happened.

She wanted to address the root cause of why these horrific shootings are happening and started the “Jesse Lewis choose love movement.”

“We can actually reduce and prevent it. We can keep our kids safe by doing this. I think what we’re learning with this string of everything that’s happening now, the unfortunate events, is that we’re going to have to do something different,” said Scarlett Lewis.

Choose love is now in over 10,500 schools in 120 countries and they teach these essential life skills like how to have healthy relationships and how to manage emotions.

You can head to chooselovemovement.org if you want to get your kids involved.

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