Thanks to a $5,000 PTCA Ministry Imagination Grant, a $2,000 PC(USA) Decade to End Gun Violence grant, and mission support from First Presbyterian Church of Stillwater [Minnesota] (FPC), Guns to Gardens in the St. Croix Valley held a safe firearms recycling event at FPC on Oct. 4, 2025. Thirty-eight firearms were destroyed/recycled. Since this was the first event in our area, the planning team had no idea how many (if any) guns would be brought by their owners to be destroyed and removed from the marketplace. There was a lot of buzz at FPC immediately before and after the event in worship and in the community. It was exciting!
FPC’s pastor, the Rev. Cader Howard, had this insight: “When we first considered holding a Guns to Gardens event, there was some fear in our congregation about inviting people to bring guns onto our property. Careful listening, open dialogue, and an explanation of the detailed procedures, training, and best practices helped us work through our fear and become excited that we could offer this event.”
Stories from donors included someone who had ALS who was afraid he would use the gun on himself. Another donor’s gun had been used in a traumatic way by a family member. Several donors had inherited the guns and did not want them in their homes and did not want them returned to the marketplace.
Lots of planning went into this event, beginning in January 2024 when one of the team leaders enrolled in a Guns to Gardens Action Circle training sponsored by the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship. In May, a group of three FPC members met to talk about hosting a Guns to Gardens event in Stillwater. Subsequently, three other FPC members took the Action Circle training. Finally, in April 2025 a planning team was formed and members reached out to area churches and other likely community organizations to assess community support. Team members spoke with FPC’s Mission Ministry Team. Guns to Gardens was adopted as an official mission project and recommended to the session for support. The session approved holding the event at the church once there was assurance that there would be non-intrusive police presence and adequate insurance coverage.
Two team members attended the James Atwood Institute for Congregational Courage in September, and the supplemental RAWtools training to become firearms safety officers for the event. The team also received referrals from RAWtools for blacksmith artists in the Twin Cities who would likely be volunteers. (One person had participated in a huge Guns to Gardens event at Bronco Stadium in Denver.) We had amazing help from them in planning and on the day of the event! They are excited about volunteering again in 2026. (RAWtools is the coordinating organization for Guns to Gardens.)
We felt the Holy Spirit’s presence in the planning, training and hosting the event. We will continue this important peacemaking mission in the future and share our expertise and equipment with other organizations interested in hosting a Guns to Gardens event. This year’s event will be held on Oct. 3, 2026, in the FPC parking lot.
Community partners included St. Michael’s Catholic Church, St. Croix United Church, American Legion Post No. 491 and the Woodbury/Stillwater Moms Demand Action. We look forward to working with these community partners again and will invite others to join the project in 2026.
Pastor Cader summed up the event this way: “In a state like Minnesota with a strong hunting culture, it was refreshing to see gun owners working alongside non-gun owners at this event to safely reduce the number of guns in our community. Working together respectfully across political, cultural and religious differences, we can find common-sense solutions that keep our neighbors safer. I am hopeful that Guns to Gardens will expand to multiple sites and events in Minnesota as we teach other congregations and organizations what we have learned.”
Linda Orsted, Guns to Gardens in the St. Croix Valley Planning Team
Prayer by the Rev. Cader Howard
Let us join in prayer for:
PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff:
Christine Diaz, Housekeeper, Stony Point Center, Presbyterian Life & Witness
Greta Garbo, Accounting Clerk, Accounts Payable Office, Administrative Services Group
Let us pray:
God of Peace, we pray for everyone who has been affected by gun violence in their families, schools and communities. Give us the courage to take positive steps in our communities to reduce gun violence and offer healing to those affected by it. Help us transform our fear into courage so that we can take action. May we not be afraid to beat swords into plowshares and guns into garden tools. Amen.
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