Before the Next Tragedy: A Global Call to Heal Trauma and Save Lives

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May 01, 2025, 11:07 ET

Scars to STARs Day 2025: Transforming Scars into STARs – A Global Call to Action on May 16, 2025 Please register free: http://www.scarstostarsday.org/

MIAMI, May 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Florida State University. Sandy Hook. Parkland. Uvalde. Oxford High School. The names are seared into our collective memory. The tragedies demand more than remembrance — they demand action. Scars to STARs Day is the solution—uniting survivors, mental health professionals, journalists, organizations and advocates worldwide to address the root causes of trauma and build pathways to prevention, resilience, and recovery.

Scars for STARS Day (PRNewsfoto/Star Network)

On May 16, 2025, during Mental Health Awareness Month, the STAR Network Foundation will host Scars to STARs Day — a global free virtual summit bringing together survivors, experts, and changemakers to address the hidden roots of trauma that too often lead to violence, addiction, and despair.

Scars to STARs Day is not just an event. It's a movement. A moment of reckoning. An urgent invitation to confront the untreated trauma, toxic relationships, and mental health neglect that lies beneath so many of today's crises.

Why You Must Join Us: The statistics are staggering — and heartbreaking:

4 out of 5 school shooters experienced severe childhood trauma or family dysfunction (U.S. Secret Service, 2019).
Nearly 70% showed clear signs of mental health struggles, yet received no meaningful intervention.
Early attachment trauma multiplies the risk of future violence by more than fivefold.
At Florida State University (2025), a gunman with a documented history of untreated mental illness injured several before being subdued.
At Sandy Hook Elementary School (Newtown, CT, 2012), the shooter had profound developmental and social-emotional challenges that were left largely unaddressed.
At Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School (Parkland FL, 2018), warning signs of mental instability were flagged repeatedly — but real help never came.
In Uvalde, Texas (Robb Elementary, 2022), the shooter endured years of bullying and familial dysfunction, culminating in unimaginable tragedy.
At Oxford High School in Michigan (2021), swift action averted mass casualties, but investigators found a chilling pattern of undiagnosed trauma and violent ideation.

These events are not isolated. They are systemic failures.

Scars to STARs Day will confront some of the most urgent and often overlooked drivers of today's mental health crisis. We will address the lifelong effects of attachment disorders, exploring how early emotional deprivation disrupts development and creates vulnerabilities that persist into adulthood. We will shine a light on TAR (toxic abusive relationships) taranon.org, the silent injuries that destabilize young minds and set dangerous cycles into motion. We will break through the barriers of mental health neglect, challenging the stigma that leaves countless children suffering in silence without proper care or intervention. And we will tackle the tragic reality of school shootings, elevating trauma prevention as a critical, lifesaving strategy to protect our children, schools, and communities. Scars to STARs Day is a call to action — to understand, heal, and prevent these hidden wounds before they erupt into larger societal tragedies.

Featuring world-renowned experts, the day will include