Last Line of Defense Pro-2A Panel in Waterville (Saturday, April 13, 2024)
The Gun Owners of Maine, Women for Gun Rights, and Turning Point USA at Kennebec County Chapter held a panel discussion last night (Saturday, April 13, 2024) at the New Beginnings Church of God in Waterville, Maine, entitled “The Last Line of Defense, Why Guns Are Necessary to Preserve Liberty.” The church serves as a meeting location for the TPUSA local chapter, which was organized a little over a year ago and maintains a singular social media account on Instagram. Longtime local evangelical and political activist Pastor Alan Imes attended and welcomed those who came out for the panel event.
The turnout was good for a Saturday night in Central Maine, but in the cavernous church, the attendance appeared modest. The panelists included the president of the Gun Owners of Maine, Laura Whitcomb (whom many might have recognized until recently as Laura Parker), Maine State Representative Katrina Smith (R-Palermo), and two local firearms instructors, retired Army National Guard SFC Bruce Roscoe and Andee Reardon of the Women for Gun Rights organization.
Other notable political attendees included current Maine State Senate candidate (and former Maine State Representative) Mike Perkins (R-Oakland), current Maine State Representative candidate (and former Maine Republican Congressional primary candidate and current Caratunk town selectman) Liz Caruso, and current Kennebec County Register of Deeds and Maine RNC National Committeeman candidate, Matt Boucher. Ed Tomic, reporter from The Maine Wire, drove up from Southern Maine to attend the event in person. Kristina ‘Kris’ Parker, Laura Whitcomb’s daughter and Turning Point USA at Kennebec County Chapter spokesperson, was the capable moderator of the panel.
Due to the nature of the sponsors of the event, several of which were nonpartisan 501c3-designated nonprofit organizations, the panel did not address specific firearm restriction bills pending action in the current Maine Legislature. Instead, the panelists hewed closely to the ‘Why Guns Are Necessary to Preserve Liberty’ theme stated in the event flyer. The event lasted approximately 90 minutes and the panelists made themselves available to attendees both before and after the panel discussion.
The Turning Point USA at Kennebec County Chapter plans a pro-life event in Central Maine in a month according to flyers distributed during the panel, when it hosts ‘The Life Revolution with Seth Gruber’ on May 11th at 6pm at Temple Academy in Waterville, which is billed as an opportunity to “Build a Culture of Life; Become a Defender of the Unborn; Stand Up in a Time of Crisis.”
0 Comments