A 22-year-old man handling a revolver in a Fairbanks, Alaska home accidentally shot his girlfriend, 21-year-old CloeRae McBrayer, last Wednesday. She was on the phone with someone else at the time. Investigators believe the cylinder held a single round. After calling 911, Landon Lowrance died by suicide at the scene despite a witness trying to intervene. One moment, one round, and two families forever changed.
CloeRae had just been accepted to the University of Alaska Fairbanks to study teaching. Her mother, Amanda Hooper, described her as a vibrant “All-American Girl” and said her daughter was terrified of guns. Her grandmother, Lesha McBrayer, and the wider family are now raising money to bring her home to Alabama; an online fundraiser has already passed $22,000. We’re sharing this story because the lesson is not complicated. Fairbanks Deputy Chief Richard Sweet put it simply: consider all firearms loaded all the time, even if you unload it.
That rule travels well. Whether you live in Sarasota, Bradenton, Venice, or anywhere along the Gulf Coast, a gun in the house calls for the same discipline: locked storage, ammunition stored separately, and every family member knowing what to do if they ever come across one. If this story brings up grief for you or someone you love, call or text 988 and let someone help. What’s your family’s gun safety rule, and does everyone who lives in your home actually know it?
