MONROE - The Newtown Foundation is inviting community members from Newtown and beyond to its breakfast fundraiser on Saturday, September 24, from 9 to 11 am, at the Waterview, 215 Roosevelt Drive in Monroe (just over the Newtown line). The event will raise funds for the 4th Annual National Vigil for All Victims of Gun Violence. www.newtownaction.org.The Newtown Foundation is a Newtown-based, all-volunteer organization formed after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Its mission is "To provide comfort, education, scholarship and other support and resources to people and communities impacted by, and living or growing up among or in the aftermath, of violence in American society; and to help them lead the way toward positive cultural change over the long term."The Newtown Foundation, Inc is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Donations to the Newtown Foundation are tax deductible.

In commemoration of the fourth anniversary of 12/14, The Newtown Foundation - the charitable arm of Newtown Action Alliance - will once again bring families of victims and survivors of gun violence from Newtown and from around the nation - from urban, rural, and suburban communities - to a National Vigil for All Victims of Gun Violence. The vigil will be a service of mourning and loving remembrance at St Mark's Episcopal Church on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, December 14, at 7 pm.

"By December 14, 2016, an estimated 120,000 more Americans will have died from gun violence since the tragic Newtown shooting four years ago. It's a heartbreaking toll that affects all of our communities," said Po Murray, chairwoman of The Newtown Foundation and Newtown Action Alliance.

"When the news vehicles depart, the victims are often forgotten in the ensuing discussions of gun violence. We are working tirelessly to ensure that these victims and their families are not forgotten," Ms Murray said.

Keynote speaker Mark Carman, founder of the American Coalition of Responsible Gun Ownership, is a gun owner, a former police officer, an undercover operative, a naval intelligence operative, a recipient of the President's Volunteers in Service to America Lifetime Achievement Award, and an Ambassador of Good Will (State of Tennessee). He is also a Grammy-nominated music producer with song-writing awards and number one recordings to his credit.

Other honored guests include Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn); Congresswoman Elizabeth Esty (D-Conn, Fifth District); Hannah D'Avino, sister of Rachel D'Avino, an educator who was killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School; Newtown First Selectman Pat Llodra; Ron Pinciaro, executive director of Connecticut Against Gun Violence; Jason Hayes, founder and organizer of #DisarmHate2016 Rally; Reverend Henry Brown, a survivor of gun violence, and founder of Mothers United Against Violence; Reverend Matt Crebbin, senior pastor of Newtown Congregational Church, and an organizer of the Interfaith Vigil during President Obama's visit to Newtown on December 16, 2012; Pastor Kathleen Adams-Shepard, Trinity Episcopal Church of Newtown; and Paul Siegel, artist and illustrator, Ridgefield.

Tickets may still be available to those interested in supporting the families of the victims of gun violence and the National Vigil for All Victims of Gun Violence at

Tickets are $60 per person; there is also an opportunity to sponsor a table of ten for $600. Supporters are encouraged to make a contribution if they are not able to attend the fundraiser.

Ms Murray stated, "We are an all-volunteer group, so the funds we raise will directly provide social support at the National Vigil for hundreds of families and survivors impacted by gun violence from all areas of the nation. The holiday season and the anniversary of the Sandy Hook tragedy are emotionally challenging times for these families. The majority of families who join us at the National Vigil for All Victims of Gun Violence have been working tirelessly to shed a light on the epidemic of gun violence in our nation since the loss of their loved ones to gun violence. We are hoping community members from near and far will step up to provide support, either in person at the fundraiser or with a contribution."

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