HOUGHTON — The Keweenaw Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (KUUF) will host a public forum online titled “Preventing Violence in Churches, Schools, Businesses?” at 10:30 am, Sunday, April 13. The presentation will discuss prevention and response strategies to potential and active violence in a variety of settings.

The speaker will be Josh Sarranen, Houghton County Sheriff. Sheriff Saaranen graduated from Jeffers High School, Gogebic Community College, and Northern Michigan University’s Regional Police Academy. He is a fourth generation Houghton County resident.

Since joining the Houghton County Sheriff’s Office in 2007, Saaranen has held a number of positions, starting as a Field Service Deputy working the road and in the jail. He became a member of a team of trainers providing active shooter/violence training. Being a part of this team gave him the opportunity to train hundreds of teachers, civilians, and local business owners and employees to take a proactive approach in response to acts of violence. He was appointed Sheriff of Houghton County in 2021 and was elected in 2024.

The forum is open to the public. It will only be on zoom. Visit the webpage for the zoom link: keweenawuu.org/worship/forums/