Lonnie and Sandy Phillips are the parents of Jessica Ghawi who was murdered in the massacre at the midnight showing of “The Dark Knight Rises” in the Summer of 2012 in Aurora, Colorado. Their grief and rage could not be measured and the loss of their beloved daughter was unimaginable.  In order to attend the trial of Jessi’s killer, they rented out their home and bought a camper trailer that ended up on a friend’s property for the duration of a trial which lasted over four months. After the trial was over they took their retirement and are presently traveling the country speaking on gun violence prevention and forming coalitions with other grassroots groups. In the six years since the death of their daughter, they have been on the ground in the immediate aftermath of ten mass shootings. They made two life-changing decisions in the midst of their grief: they’d cling to one another, keeping their marriage intact as so many survivors had not, and they’d turn their heartbreak into action to prevent the tragedy of gun violence for other families. They founded a nonprofit, “Survivors Empowered” that provides resources, guidance, and a soft place to land for survivors of gun violence.  

Find Survivors Empowered here:
https://www.survivorsempowered.org/