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PHX family selling bracelets to benefit Orlando massacre victims

Posted at 5:09 PM, Jun 14, 2016
and last updated 2016-06-14 21:54:20-04

A Phoenix family is turning heartache into action in response to the Orlando massacre.

The Proudfit family is excited that their order for 600 bracelets arrived on Tuesday afternoon. 

“It says, ‘love one another,'" said 11-year-old Weston Proudfit. 

That’s the message they want to share after learning that nearly 50 people were killed at an Orlando nightclub on Sunday. Dozens more were injured.

“They (the children) were horrified and sad and scared," Becky Proudfit, a mother of four, said. "So we explained to them that they could do something about it, that they didn’t have to just be afraid. They didn’t have to just sit there and be helpless." 

The Proudfit family lived in Orlando for some time. So Sunday, they anxiously waited to hear whether their loved ones were safe.

“They (the children) were in the same room. As I was learning about the attack, they were learning about the attack as well," Becky Proudfit said. 

It’s a hard conversation to have, but it's one that professionals say parents should have with their children, using simple and non-graphic language that children can understand.

"The best thing you can do for your children is show them what is happening and give them the capacity to be resilient," said Julie Rosen, a licensed professional counselor and vice president of the Building Resiliency programs with Chicanos Por La Causa. 

Rosen said parents should initiate the talk with their children and that parents should take cues from their children-- let them ask questions. 

"Our job as parents is to calm them, to make sure that they don't have any adverse effects from this media exposure, and to soothe them, but also to address the truth in a way that they can hear it," Rosen said. 

The Proudfit children, ages 3 through 11, came up with the idea to raise money for a blood bank in Orlando by selling bracelets.

Becky Proudfit asked her son, "Wes, how do you think you'd feel if more people decided to help?"

"I would feel really, really good because then I’d know that they cared a lot," Weston said. 

The family purchased the bracelets using money that they were going to use for a trip to the beach. By Tuesday afternoon, the family had received 120 orders online. They hope to raise $6,000 for the blood bank. 

If you would like to order a bracelet, you can find the Love One Another Project website by clicking here.