Funded Projects

Safe Gun Storage in New Hampshire

Project Year

2025

City & State

Concord, New Hampshire

Program Name

CATCH Implementation

Topic

Firearm Safety

Program Description

The problem:  Gun use and ownership are integral to the culture of New Hampshire, therefore safe use and storage of firearms must also be a topic that everyone is familiar with.   Children are inherently curious. Any parent of a young child can provide an anecdote of the child “getting into something” that they shouldn’t have. Parents may be aware of the risk of a child gaining access to an improperly stored gun in their own home, but it is imperative to also discuss this topic with any adult who cares for their child. This means asking before play dates, or visits to grandparents or neighbors.  Families with teens must also be wary of safe gun storage. Research has shown that adolescents and adults who consider suicide are far more likely to die if they have access to lethal means- including easy access to a gun.  Data from the National Institutes of Mental Health shows that 1 in 5 adolescents reported a major depressive episode in 2021. We all know that teens have strong feelings and poor impulse control. Keeping guns out of the hands of teens can be a difference between life and death.  Primary setting: Concord NH and Manchester NH, two of the largest cities in our state.   I will work with the school boards, police departments and community members in these towns to promote safe gun storage education and provide materials including gun locks and gun safes.   Number of Children Affected: On average, about 144 people in NH per year are killed by a gun.  Firearms were responsible for 64.3% of homicide deaths of children, and 34.5% of suicide deaths of children in New Hampshire between 2018-2022. Suicide (85.7%) was the leading cause of intentional injury death in children ages 10 to 21 during this time period. (NH Child Fatality Review Board 2023 annual report).  Goal 1 Partner with Concord and Manchester school boards about how to best disseminate information about secure gun storage to parents. Possible methods include distributing educational hand outs from AAP Safe Gun Storage Toolkit, implementing policy change to include gun safety education in the curriculum, or partnering with school resource officers to incorporate this information in safety programming that already exists.   Goal 2 Engage parents and other community members in the effort to raise awareness about safe gun storage practices. I will host a table at the National Night Out Community event in Manchester NH and Concord NH and distribute gun safes and gun locks, along with surveys to engage adults in the community about this topic. Survey respondents will also be asked to participate in focus groups to further delve into this topic.   Anticipated Outcome:  Enhanced awareness of the importance of secure gun storage in Concord NH and Manchester NH and integration of this important topic into public school safety curriculum. 

Project Goal

To introduce and strengthen programming to promote safe gun storage education in the Concord and Manchester NH school systems by the end of the academic year 2026 (June 2026), gain community partners including police, parents, and school board members, and attend community events promoting safe gun storage.  

Project Objective 1

Collaborate with Manchester and Concord school boards to introduce programming to promote safe gun storage education before July 2026. By July 2025, a minimum of 2 meetings will be held with the Manchester and Concord school board to develop appropriate educational opportunities to promote safe gun storage. 

Project Objective 2

By September 2025, collect at least 50 survey responses from community members on how best to educate our community on the topic of safe gun storage. 

Project Objective 3

By August 2025, distribute at least 10 gun safes and 10 gun locks at National Night Out in Concord and Manchester. 

AAP District

District I

Institutional Name

NHAAP

Contact 1

Christine Arsnow, MD