14-02-2025
Seven years after Parkland: Florida father's mission to prevent school violence continues
Seven years ago today, on Valentine's Day 2018, my life changed in ways I could never have imagined. That was the day my beautiful daughter, Gina Rose Montalto, was taken from us in the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
Losing Gina shattered my world. It shattered our family. It broke our community. And while the pain of that day will always be with me, it also ignited something deep within — a mission to make sure no other family has to experience what we did.
Out of that unimaginable sorrow, Stand with Parkland was born. What began as a response to tragedy has grown into a movement of hope and action.
It's not easy to relive that day or talk about what we lost, but I do it because I believe we can—and must—create change.
On a national level, we've worked tirelessly to push for bipartisan solutions, like the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. It's brought meaningful change by expanding background checks, funding mental health programs and providing resources to help prevent violence in our schools.
In Florida, we fought for the passage of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act just months after the shooting. This groundbreaking legislation strengthened school security, boosted funding for mental health resources, and raised the minimum age for firearm purchases.
Florida also took a leading role in school safety reform with measures like the School Guardian Act, ensuring trained law enforcement officers are present in every K-12 school. These laws, paired with expanded mental health services, have made our state a national model for safety reform.
What Florida has done proves something important: when we come together and put politics aside, we can make meaningful progress. If it can happen here, it can happen anywhere.
This year, Florida will host the National Summit on School Safety in Orlando next week, bringing together education leaders, law enforcement, policymakers and safety professionals from across the country. This is our chance to share what we've learned, to collaborate with others and to encourage states to take real, proven steps to protect their students and teachers.
Yet, despite these accomplishments, we know our work is far from done. Each school shooting that occurs is a painful reminder of the urgency of our mission. Hundreds of tragedies have happened since Gina's life was stolen, and each one strengthens our resolve to fight for a safer future.
We believe there is more that unites us on this issue than divides us, and we are committed to working with anyone — regardless of political affiliation — to protect our nation's children.
The tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School changed us forever. But it also inspired us to act. We know what works: expanding mental health resources, implementing effective behavioral threat assessments, ensuring responsible firearms ownership, and building comprehensive school safety plans. This isn't a partisan issue—it's about saving lives.
As we mark this solemn anniversary, we call on lawmakers, educators, parents, and community members to join us in this vital mission. Let us honor the memories of those we lost by ensuring their legacy is one of action and change.
Together, we can create a future where every child can pursue their education free from fear, and every parent can send their child to school with confidence in their safety.
Tony Montalto is the father of Gina Rose Montalto, 14, who was a victim at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018. He is the president of Stand with Parkland -The National Association of Families for Safe Schools, an advocacy group founded by families that had a loved one killed in the Parkland school massacre. He is also president of the Gina Rose Montalto Memorial Foundation, established by Tony and his wife, Jennifer, to keep Gina's light shining by helping others through scholarships and awards as listed at:
