The front steps to the Evangelical Reformed United Church of Christ were adorned with orange ribbons on Saturday to support the group gathered in the basement for a roundtable discussion.

Two of the women in the ERUCC community room said they lived through school shootings. Two others said they lost immediate family members to gun violence. Others worked directly with survivors of gun violence.

All in attendance had come to recognize Wear Orange Weekend, a national event originally created to honor Hadiya Pendleton, a Chicago teen who was shot and killed in 2013.

Since then, organizations such as Moms Demand Action have broadened the scope of the event to include all who have been affected by gun violence, according to Jessica Douglass, the local group lead for Frederick.

A few years back, Douglass said, Frederick Moms Demand Action hosted a panel on how the community can combat gun violence. But this year, the group wanted to focus specifically on how the community can better support survivors.

The roundtable discussion included Frederick County Health Officer Dr. Barbara Brookmyer, Travis Walter of the Mental Health Association of Frederick County, Deputy Frederick Police Chief Joe Hayer and state Del. Kris Fair (D-3).

Also featured on the panel were Jenn Metcalf of Heartly House, a nonprofit serving victims of domestic violence; Navian Scarlett, a co-founder of the Frederick chapter of Students Demand Action; and Barbara Pinnock, who lost her son in a shooting and subsequently founded the nonprofit Community of Grace.

Scarlett said she was inspired to get involved with gun violence prevention work after two students were shot outside her high school during a basketball game in 2015.

Scarlett said the experience made her realize it is “not a matter of if, but when” a person will be affected by gun violence in some way.

Asked about what the community can do to better support survivors, Scarlett said she thinks joining advocacy groups can be intimidating for people who have recently experienced trauma.

As an alternative to groups like Moms Demand Action or Students Demand Action, Scarlett said she would like to see a regularly scheduled event like a breakfast or activity where survivors could interact with one another without feeling pressured to share their stories.

Pinnock said she has been sober 23 years and now works as a peer recovery specialist.

She said there needs to be greater awareness about the co-occurence of mental illness, addiction and gun violence.

Pinnock also said Frederick should have more mental health resources available in order to prevent gun violence and help survivors heal in its aftermath.

Walter acknowledged that, although Frederick County has more mental health agencies per capita than other counties in the state, groups like the Mental Health Association are still only meeting about 70% of the need for services.

Metcalf agreed, adding that finding a mental health provider that deals specifically with trauma can be especially difficult in Frederick County.

“I don’t expect no mother to go through what I went through without support,” Pinnock said.