Highland Park tragedy inspires HS student to create trauma response kits

Chicago Tribune

07-04-2025

Sumner Silver was not at the July 4, 2022 parade in Highland Park, where a gunman killed seven people and wounded 48 others, but she shared the grief of those who were at the parade.
'I had a best friend who was there at the time of the shooting,' Silver said. 'She had me on the phone as she was running away from the shooting. I was helping her navigate.'
That tragedy spurred the Highland Park resident to action.
'It made me really sad for all the people who were there,' said the now 16-year-old Highland Park High School junior. 'I really felt like this is bound to happen elsewhere if we don't do something about it. I thought, 'How can I help minimize the magnitude of such a tragedy?''
She began thinking of ways to help.
Silver prepared herself for emergencies by becoming 'Stop the Bleed' certified at the Evanston Fire Department about a month after the shooting. 'I wanted to be able to help out in a situation like that,' she said.
The teen felt the need to do more, though. 'I got a lot of feedback from the volunteers at the parade and they mentioned that they wish they could have been able to do something,' Silver said. 'They wish they had the skill set and also the tools to be able to take action in a tragedy like that.'
That inspired Silver to create Hope Kits, portable trauma-response kits that can provide life-saving aid for gunshot wounds, stabbing wounds, or other trauma injuries.
These kits answered Silver's question: 'How can people who are in such situations help minimize the effects of such tragedy?'
Each Hope Kit includes a CAT (Combat Application Tourniquet)-certified tourniquet, emergency wound-packing gauze, and step-by-step instructions on providing first aid in trauma situations.
So far, Silver, with the assistance of her mother, Dana Silver, has created over 180 Hope Kits. 'Our goal is to make as many as possible,' the teen said.
Silver donated 170 of those kits to the Institute for Nonviolence Chicago. 'We were looking for an organization that directly helps fight gun violence,' Silver explained. 'Their mission greatly aligns with what we had hoped to do with the Hope Kits.'
'She saw the impact we were making and thought it would be a good fit,' said Shunda Collins, Vice President of Development and Communications for the Institute for Nonviolence Chicago.
Collins said that some of the Hope Kits are staying with their staff.
'We have a team of victim advocates and outreach workers who regularly are in communities,' Collins explained. Other Kits were given to the group's Peacekeepers. 'They're not on staff, but they are on stipends. They help in terms of mediating conflict and building relationships, being like a connecting point for us to get resources out to communities,' Collins said. 'We believe that if there is an opportunity for us to help, we want to do that.'
Silver indicated that they plan to donate more Hope Kits to the Institute for Nonviolence Chicago as well as to local fire departments and possibly the Chicago Police Department.
To finance the venture, Silver sells her handmade greeting cards, Happy Notes, at area art fairs. She will be selling them next at the Deerfield Art Festival in downtown Deerfield, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., May 31-June 1. The cards sell for $18 for a set of six cards.
'I'm passionate about art,' Silver explained. 'I wanted to bring a little light in such dark times for my community, so I created a series of uplifting greeting cards directly after the shooting to be able to fundraise for the Highland Park Community Foundation, which supports the victims affected by the Highland Park shooting.'
So far, Silver has raised over $10,000 through the sale of her greeting cards; $3,000 for the Highland Park Community Foundation and the rest for creating the Hope Kits.
You can purchase Happy Notes or donate to the project at happynotescards.com.