Ken Price urges Orillians to support cause; 'It’s not like the smaller cities are exempt from what we’re talking about'

Ken Price never thought he’d become an advocate for gun control, but he also never thought his daughter would be a victim of gun violence.

The unthinkable happened when the Orillia native’s daughter, Samantha Price, was shot July 22, 2018, when Faisal Hussein gunned down 15 people on Danforth Avenue in Toronto.

Samantha Price survived. Her friend, Reese Fallon, did not. Ten-year-old Julianna Kozis was also killed, at a separate location.

Samantha Price and Fallon were among a group of four friends who were shot that evening when they were out together celebrating a birthday.

“Life gives you these things and you have to decide what you have to do. We decided to take action,” Ken Price told OrilliaMatters.

He and a group of victims and their family members attended town hall meetings about gun control held by Bill Blair, the federal minister of border security and organized crime reduction, as the government mulls a potential nation-wide handgun ban. The comments from the audience hit a nerve.

“We realized the most consistent messages were for leaving gun laws the way they were,” Price said. “That’s when we decided we should act.”

The group opted to get on board with Trigger Change, a campaign by the Coalition for Gun Control that is calling for “a national handgun and military assault weapon ban,” according to its website.

“We’ll be just as bad as the U.S. if we don’t say what we have to say and try to make change happen,” Price said, citing mass shootings at schools in Parkland, Fla., and Newtown, Conn., as examples.

“Handguns and assault rifles, in particular — private ownership of these items — are leading to an increased amount of gun violence. A handgun is designed to shoot other people.”

Price acknowledges “there are law-abiding gun owners” and said the group is not targeting all guns. He also stressed it has nothing to do with politics.

“People who haven’t expressed an opinion need to weigh in on this. The majority and public safety need to be respected. That’s what will drive change,” he said. “It’s not a partisan issue.”

Price, who graduated from Orillia District Collegiate and Vocational Institute in 1983, is urging his hometown to get behind the cause and the sign the petition, which can be found here.

“I believe that Orillia is a progressive, conservative town and would probably side with reasonable compromise to achieve public safety,” he said. “It’s not like the smaller cities are exempt from what we’re talking about.”

Price’s dad, Bill, was a long-time educator and volunteer in Orillia. He died in 2014 after a battle with cancer.

He was known for getting results when something needed to be done, and Price is sure his father would latch onto the gun-control issue if he were still around, and would be a thorn in the side of local politicians.

“They’re lucky the old man isn’t still alive because he’d be living in their offices until they cried uncle,” Price said. “Can you imagine Bill Price knowing his granddaughter had been shot?”

Price has written to Orillia Mayor Steve Clarke and Simcoe North MP Bruce Stanton, hoping to secure their support for the ban. He hasn’t heard back yet, but noted he only recently reached out to them.

While Price advocates for stricter gun laws, his focus is also on his daughter. On the night of the rampage in Toronto that lasted about 10 minutes, Samantha was shot at point-blank range in the back of her leg.

“She fell immediately and (Hussein) lost interest,” Price said.

Her falling to the ground might have saved her life, he added, as some of the other victims were shot multiple times before they hit the ground.

“She’s better now,” Price said of his daughter. “She’s at university. That’s another fortunate break for her, that she was able to leave town and not be surrounded by this.”

While she has recovered physically, the psychological wounds will take longer to heal — a fact that further motivates Price to fight for change.