They could have been at the beach or the movies, but hundreds of mostly high school students and kids were at the Collier County government complex Friday evening.
"I'm overjoyed that they're here, but quite frankly I'm enraged that we have to be here, that we have to argue about this in 2018, when Columbine happened in 1998, I should not have been raised with this," said Naples High Sophomore Emma Sullivan.
Emma says she's tired of her generation being portrayed as teens who stay idle and don't care about what goes on in society.
Her efforts haven't gone unnoticed, former U.S. Soccer star and Naples resident Abby Wambach is among those supporting Emma.
"It's the first time in a long time that I felt so hopeful. I felt so scared, the last couple of years, and all of the gun violence that has happened, there needs to be gun reform," said Wambach.
Governor Rick Scott is on board with gun reform, proposing sweeping changes for lawmakers to vote on, that will include raising the age for purchasing a gun to 21, and barring anyone deemed mentally unfit from buying a gun.
"I do believe it is a start, I believe what is necessary is universal background checks, red flag laws, to ensure this can never happen again," said Sullivan.
Emma says now that the rally is over, the real work on gun reform must continue.
"In order to cause change we have to educate ourselves, we have to be prepared, we have to be the ones to take a stand."
Emma says her school will participate in a nationwide protest against school violence on March 24th.
Students will also be acknowledging the Columbine school shooting on April 20th, 19 years after 13 students were murdered at the Colorado high school.
