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MONTEGO BAY, St James - When Reverend Howard Nelson was six years old, his father put a gun in his hand and let him pull the trigger during a new year's salute. His father, said the man who now shepherds members at Lilliput New Testament Church of God in Montego Bay, was a don. When Rev Nelson was 10, his father - who grew up in Kingston's tough inner-city communities Rema, and Jarrett Lane in Mountain View - was gunned down by cronies who were unhappy with his decision to leave behind his life of crime.Nelson's God-fearing mother was left with five children - four boys and a girl - to care for.Two years after his father was killed, his uncle gave Nelson and his older brother guns to take to school."Yuh father gone, ennuh and now unnuh deh ah high school. Anybady diss unnuh, come tell mi mek mi deal wid it; or unnuh deal wid it unnuh self," his late father's brother said as he handed the teenagers the weapons.After two years of living through several "wars" in his community, 14-year-old Nelson decided he had had enough. The tipping point was seeing his armed cousins and uncles on the streets, protecting the community, while the don was tucked away in bed. He decided to change his life by getting an education.Today he is a man of the cloth, lending his voice to the fight against crime.Nelson shared his story during Thursday's launch of a security summit to be hosted by the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MBCCI) from April 6-7. Director of Communications for Beryllium (formerly Guardsman Group) George Overton, and National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang are slated to address the forum.The summit, which was launched at Grand-A-View Hotel in St James, is themed 'Collective Security... unity in action'. It will be held at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St James."The MBCCI decided it was action time, not time for more talk," said MBCCI President Janet Silvera in explaining the reason for the event."For us as a nation to truly be free, we need to be able to walk our streets, sleep in our beds, go to school, sit in our living room and comb our hair without fear of our lives being prematurely taken from us. And this freedom, this security, needs to be for all citizens of Jamaica, no matter our skin colour or financial status," she added.Silvera is of the view that, while the country has had several discussions on how to solve the crime problem, numerous rounds of social intervention that have not been effective, declarations of states of public emergency and zones of special operation, the country remains unsafe for many Jamaicans. The problem, she added, is not just one that needs to be solved by the State but needs input from citizens."The security summit is to highlight the importance of all of us working together to guarantee the safety and security of all Jamaica - young and old, rich and poor. To break down the invisible walls that exist between our uptown and downtown communities... for persons living on the other side of the wall to share with us their version of the story. To share with us their lives, their struggles and how sons and sometimes daughters fall prey to being recruited in gangs and engaging in acts of criminality," said Silvera."Once this wall is broken down, and we all understand what makes a criminal, then we as a people can work together to reshape our communities to no longer create criminals," she added.