Detroit chef takes a stand against gun violence after he was shot outside his restaurant

A Detroit chef put down his knife and fork for a moment on Sunday and brought people together to educate them on gun violence.

The anti-gun violence rally came after several recent shootings in the area, many of them involving children.

Chef Greg Beard, who owns Chef Greg's Soul-N-The Wall on Curtis Street, said he was leaving his restaurant in April when a teenager attacked him in the parking lot and another randomly shot at him from afar.

"I have been on this corner for 21 years; first time this has ever happened to me," Beard said.

He was shot in the leg.

"I was told someone was apprehended, but no charges ... They were, like, 15, 16-year-old teenagers," Beard said. 

He later added, "I'm pushing 70, and you want to shoot me, for what?"

The encounter with gun violence inspired Sunday's event in the parking lot of the restaurant. With it, Beard says he wants to equip the community with resources and a safe space to rebuild and bring the community together.

Other than Beard, local leaders spoke to people of all ages just trying to make their community a safer place.

"I thought it was a good function for us to participate [in] and be aware of gun violence because there needs to be a stop to it," Carol Tarber said.

Earlier this month in Detroit, a child was shot by their sibling. Authorities confirmed the weapon was not locked away. 

On Monday, a 7-year-old girl was shot in the arm when a bullet that struck her mother during an argument also hit the child.

"It's sad to see our community has to go through things like that," Kyla Kiel said. "It's sad to see people are ok with harming people that don't do anything to them."

Beard hopes his story and the event will refocus and remind people that nothing should be solved with a gun.