SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gun violence continues to be a big problem in the Sacramento area. But one family who lost their son — a beloved father and coach — in a shooting, is hoping to use their pain to help save lives.
“We think that is important that the community understands that, that we can be our own heroes,” said Deborah Grimes, mother of Greg “Najee” Grimes.
Grimes and her husband Gregory Grimes hoped life saving measures were available to the public earlier, but their mission is to save as many lives as possible.
“We need to be able to address these kinds of traumatic experiences and take them head on,” said Grimes
It's been nearly a year since the Grimes lost their son, 31-year-old Greg “Najee” Grimes, to gun violence outside of a downtown Sacramento nightclub. He was a father and beloved assistant coach at Inderkum High School.
The Grimes family hosted a lifesaving party in their son’s honor Saturday, giving people tools to learn CPR, stop bleeding, active shooter training and more. The classes were taught by first responders in and around the area like staff from UC Davis Medical Center.
“Bleeding is actually the number one cause of preventable death after an injury,” said Dr. Kate Stadeli, Trauma Surgeon at UC Davis Medical Center. “So, if we can reach out and teach folks how to help us control that type of bleeding until help can get there and get people to the hospital, we can probably save a lot of lives.”
With the recent string of deadly shootings across Sacramento, the Grimes say it is vital the community learn the important lifesaving class.
“This is the first time I have seen a comprehensive, 'how can we address gun violence? How can we address safety? How can we do more in our community?' so that we understand ways to keep each other safe,” said Sacramento Council Member Lisa Kaplan.
Many in attendance appreciated the unique way of putting the tools in the public’s hands.
“It's very important for us to know how we can save a life how we can be there for somebody, when it's most importantly needed,” said Maggie Montero of Tri-Counties Bank.
Many say while these trainings are a good start, more needs to be done community wide.
“This needs to stop,” said Keivin Boone-Nelson, who was coached by Greg “Najee” Grimes. “Like there is so many possible outlets and different ways to release anger and all this stuff and resolve conflicts. It does not need to be with a bullet or a gun. I just came back from a funeral in the same way from one of our friends. He did not get to graduate. So, this just hurts.
The Grimes family hope to make this event annual.
They also gave away gun locks at the event for additional gun safety tips.
Stop the bleed courses are available for the public and free. If you are interested, you can reach out to UC Davis Medical Center.
