Here’s how some Philly creatives are coping with gun violence

In the aftermath of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, and the nameless horror that accompanied it, designers Rachel Robinson and Ilyssa Kyu came to a grim realization: they had both been involved in a school shooting.

Robinson, a P’unk Ave alum now with Think Company who attended Virginia Tech connected with Cue, a P’unk Ave designer, to turn the pain into action.

“This is about creating a conversation about how we can contribute in unique ways,” Robinson said.

The result of their reckoning was CreativeChangePHL a collective of creatives whose first move is a fundraiser happening Tuesday night at Johnny Brenda’s. The event will feature art auctions, conversations led by author Sara Wachter-Boettcher and music from Philly act all boy/all girl. All proceeds for the event, titled #neveragain, will go to Newtown, Conn.-based nonprofit Sandy Hook Promise.

In addition to raising money for a cause, the group hopes to use the evening to rally the creative and digital community around ways to combat gun violence.

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“In an ideal world theres a creative change in other cities,” Robinson said. “We could even share the logo and the way we did things.”

The artwork auction will include works by local artists like Corey Danks, Margo Hurst, Eric Kenney, Ralph Stollenwerk, Patricia McElroy and ArtStar Philadelphia.

“Plenty of people feel like they’re alone in witnessing what our world has become,” said P’unk Ave developer Andre Chapelle, who’s also part of the organizing team. “We want to create a forum for people to get together and do something about it.”