CeasefirePA

One of the problems in discussing the gun violence problem that impacts so much of our society is that people want to discuss solutions as if they are mutually exclusive.

Pro-Gun, Anti-Gun.

Pro-Second Amendment, Anti-Second Amendment.

Pro-Enforcement, Pro-Gun Control.

At CeaseFirePA, Pennsylvania’s leading gun violence prevention organization, we are working hard for both better enforcement of current laws against illegal gun traffickers and for stronger, commonsense handgun safety laws through education and advocacy in communities across Pennsylvania.

We aren't pro-gun or anti-gun. 

We are for safer communities and believe that tougher enforcement and closing loopholes in our gun laws are compatible solutions.

Core Initiatives

• Requiring Lost or Stolen Handgun Reporting. Reporting a lost or stolen handgun missing allows law enforcement officers to begin searching for a missing gun before it winds up at a crime scene and makes it easier for police to identify “straw purchasers” – people who buy guns legally, and then sell them illegally to people who are legally prohibited from possessing firearms. CeaseFirePA aims to help in the passage of lost or stolen as a statewide reform.

• Closing the Florida Concealed Carry Permit Loophole. A loophole in Pennsylvania law allows residents to circumvent PA law enforcement when applying for a concealed carry permit—both those individuals making a first-time application and those who have previously been denied a PA permit. PA residents can apply to the Florida Department of Agriculture and obtain a Florida permit to carry in Pennsylvania.

• Closing the Terror Gap. A terrorist on the government's watch list can walk into any gun shop in Pennsylvania and walk out with as many weapons as he can pay for as long as he doesn't have a criminal record.

• Educating PA voters on where their candidates stand on key gun reforms. CeaseFirePA keeps Pennsylvanians informed as to where their candidates for elected office at the local, state and federal levels stand on key gun violence prevention issues.

• Growing Coalitions Across Pennsylvania: More than 180 bipartisan mayors throughout the Commonwealth through Mayors Against Illegal Guns; nearly 100 Pennsylvania police chiefs; more than 370 PA faith leaders; students, business leaders, health professionals and concerned citizens.

Please refer to the Policy page for more information.

Statistics to Know

• More than 1,200 people die annually in PA from gun-related incidents—homicides, suicides and accidental shootings.

• 22 police officers have been shot and killed in PA over the last decade.  More than half were murdered by felons using illegal guns.

• Six PA police officers were shot and killed in the last year.

• Harrisburg, our capital city, has the highest per capita murder rate in PA.

• $125 million is spent annually on the healthcare needs of shooting victims in PA, including $90 million to care for uninsured victims.

• 30,000 people die annually in America in gun-related incidents.  The U.S. has the worse incidence of gun violence—by far—in comparison to other countries.

Thank you very much for your interest in our mission to prevent and reduce gun violence in Pennsylvania.

Board of Directors

OFFICERS

Phil Goldsmith, President, 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) is a principal and founder of GoldsmithKahnAssociates, a public issues management consulting firm. He has held senior positions in a broad spectrum of fields including law, journalism, government, banking, and human resource consulting. He is the former managing director of the City of Philadelphia, and past interim director of the School District of Philadelphia.

Lynne Honickman, Vice President (501)(c)(4) founder  of Moms Against Guns, is a lifelong advocate for children's health, education and a better quality of life. She is a longtime activist for critical social issues from AIDS, to poverty, to equitable education, to ending gun violence.  Lynne served on Mayor Street’s Council for the Homeless and continues on Mayor Nutter’s Action Leadership Team to End Homelessness. She is a trustee of Project H.O.M.E., and as the founder and president of The Honickman Foundation, she remains focused on funding projects that support the arts, education and health and social change.

Nancy Lamason, Vice-President, 501(c)(3) is one of the founding members of CeaseFirePA.  She came to this issue as a concerned citizen after many successful years in business, both in Pennsylvania and abroad. Nancy is one of our hardest working fundraisers, and most reliable office volunteer.

James C. Higgins, Treasurer, 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) is an attorney in private practice in Delaware County, with a long history of public service.  Jim is a veteran of the Vietnam War, and several years ago served two terms as a Commissioner of Radnor Township, Pennsylvania. He is the president of a historical foundation in his community and has been an advocate for common sense firearms regulations for over thirty years.

James Sayne, Secretary, 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) has been a part of our organization’s leadership from its earliest days, and has held two executive positions on the board in past years.  He is employed by Unisys, Inc.  in the field of computer systems development.

MEMBERS

Nancy Bregstein Gordon, 501(c)(4) a founding member of CeaseFirePA, has re-joined the board to employ her advocacy and development expertise across a spectrum of initiatives. Over the past decade, she has helped manage political, advocacy and fundraising campaigns. Gordon also served as a law clerk to US Supreme Court Justice Lewis F. Powell, Jr., practiced law in Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia, and has a deep understanding of gun violence prevention laws.

Susan Burt-Collins, 501(c)(4) practiced criminal law for many years, and been a candidate for  Montgomery County District Attorney in the past.  She’s also been a member of the board of directors of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.

Robert Eddis, 501(c)(4) is a long time police officer and former president of the Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 5, and is currently the Chief of Staff at Lodge 5.  His connections to law enforcement agencies across the state are an essential part of our outreach in that area.

Dr. Paul J. Fink, 501(c)(3) is a nationally recognized leader in the field of psychiatry, as well as a long time advocate for children.  He has headed the Psychiatry Departments at Thomas Jefferson University and Albert Einstein Hospitals in Philadelphia, and has been president of the American Psychiatric Association and the American College of Psychiatrists.  He is currently chairman of the Philadelphia Interdisciplinary Mortality Review Team’s Youth Homicide Committee.

David Glancey, 501(c)(4) recently retired from the Philadelphia Board of Revision of Taxes, where he held several positions over the years, including Chairman.  He is now on the staff of the University of Pennsylvania, in their Office of Government Relations as a liaison to local government.

Mary Beth Hacke, 501(c)(4) joined the CeaseFire PA board as one of the original members.  Her son was killed ten years ago, at the age of fourteen months, when he was shot at in their parked car at a gas station, by a convicted felon with a gun.  Ever since then throughout her Pittsburgh community, she has been outspoken against lax regulations which allow criminals easy access to handguns.

Raymond T. Jones, Jr., 501(c)(4) is founder of Philadelphia Safety Net and co-founder of the anti-violence group Men United for a Better Philadelphia, noted for its innovative “street shoulder” approach to ending violence. Ray’s length history of service to the community has garnered him numerous awards.

Keith Leaphart, 501(c)(4) president of Replica Creative: Design + Print, found that his passion to help others led him to a career in medicine, and his longing to understand the business aspects of medicine prompted him to jointly obtain a business degree—from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and Saint Joseph’s University, respectively. Leaphart offers a combined expertise in medicine, business and social awareness.

Dr. Julie Levitt, 501(c)(3) is a practicing clinical psychologist in Lower Merion, PA.  She represents CeaseFire PA in an interfaith collaborative on the Main Line that conducts vigils and educational programming on gun violence prevention, and lectures widely on conflict resolution.

Lisa Macaulay, 501(c)(3) joined the CeaseFire PA board last year.  She is a business executive with Johnson and Johnson, and lives in Chester County.  Lisa brings v alued management perspective to the organization.

Bridgette Nicole Montgomery, 501(c)(3) is a licensed clinical social worker and the program coordinator for the Adolescent Day Treatment Program at Joseph J. Peters Institute in Philadelphia, a mental health treatment center for youth who have sexual acting out behaviors. She is the founder and CEO of Bridge of Love Inc., and a member of the National Association of Social Workers and Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ATSA).  Her love for working with inner city youth and prevention of delinquent behaviors in our youth is what motivates her to serve on the board of directors of CeaseFirePA.

Dan Muroff, 501(c)(4) is a former legislative aide in Harrisburg and on Capitol Hill. He now has his own government relations firm and possesses an intimate familiarity with the people and institutions that CeaseFire PA must appeal to in order to achieve our organizational goals.

Sister Mary Scullion (501)(c)(3) is executive director and co-founder of Project H.O.M.E., a nationally recognized program providing solutions to homelessness and poverty.    Sister Mary has made an unparalleled impact in the City of Philadelphia and has received numerous awards and honorary doctorates for her leadership, including the 1992 Philadelphia Award, in 2002 an Eisenhower Fellowship and the Ford Foundation's "Leadership for a Changing World Award." In 2009, she was elected by TIME Magazine's as one of 'The World's 100 Most Influential People.”  She was just appointed by Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter to serve on the city’s Board of Ethics and was also named board member of the Jon Bon Jovi Foundation.

Jennifer W. Stein, 501(c)(3) has been a CeaseFire PA supporter since its founding, and came onto the board in the spring of 2006.  She was a co-founder of the Coalition Against Jewish Domestic Violence in 1983, and has been active in anti-violence causes since then.  She is an independent documentary filmmaker and lives in Philadelphia’s western suburbs.

Ed Tettemer, 501(c)(3) a renowned independent advertising and communications consultant, has 35 years experience in advertising and communications.  He has worked with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Tourism Office and Department of Agriculture to develop a road-trip renaissance across the state.  Tettemer has a deep knowledge of the unique culture and heritage of Pennsylvania's rural communities and Main Street towns.

Staff:

Joe Grace, Executive Director, Prior to joining CeaseFirePA in 2008, Joe served as Communications Director for the City of Philadelphia.  Joe has also served in federal and state government, and has also managed campaigns for U.S. Congress and District Attorney.  Joe is an attorney and former professional journalist, whose work was twice nominate d for the Pulitzer Prize. As chief spokesman for Philadelphia, Joe worke d on the issue of gun violence and illegal handguns at a local, state and national level.

Blair Kahora, Associate Director handles communications, development and operations for CeaseFirePA.  She previously worked in the communications department of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, in the public relations department of Tierney Communications and as an independent freelancer for nonprofit agencies. Blair’s specialties include strategic planning, branding, budget management, media relations, event planning, research and communications writing. 

Jana Finder, Western Pennsylvania Coordinator, is an attorney with a background in civil rights and public health. Jana coordinates the efforts of the CeaseFire PA Education Fund in Allegheny County. In that role, Jana engages mayors, council members, faith leaders, police chiefs and citizens throughout western Pennsylvania, shares information and data about gun violence prevention, and seeks to involve more western PA citizens and officials in CeaseFirePA’s work.