Success Story

I am a grieving mother. I'd heard of domestic violence; was a victim and a survivor. But never in my life did I even think that gun violence would impact my life - at least not directly.

On February 8, 2000, both my 22 year old twin sons were working on a car in Oakland where they were employed and attended college; that is where they were both murdered by a killer using an A-K47 rifle. They were the 10th and 11th murders (2000).

As an effort to cope, I doubled my caseload so that I could avoid facing my indescribable fears and heartaches. Almost one year to the date, I passed out on my job. My doctor admitted me to the hospital for support and finally placed me on long-term disability with instructions to take anti-depressants.

However, I was forced to face my fear of endless and painful tears. I sank into a deep depression; suffered in silence for years until one day I could sense the Holy Spirit speaking to me "Lorrain, you can lie here and die here or you can get up and live". I responded. "Lord I want to live". "Get up, go see about the other mothers".

Realizing I was not the only one suffering the loss of a child to gun violence, I got up and began knocking on doors attempting to share groceries and offer support to other - especially grieving mothers; we often ended up consoling one another. The fact that I understood, I was welcomed in to offer much needed ongoing and practical services to families and friends of homicide victims and victims of both domestic and/or gun violence. Following a profile in the S.F. Chronicle in December 2006, my life has never been the same. While the pain is still present, I find nothing more rewarding than helping others.
By L. Taylor