Nearly 20 years after a fatal robbery changed two families forever, two people connected by tragedy are finding common ground in an unexpected place: helping others find a different path.

John Doubleday was 23 when he fatally shot 62-year-old Jutte Gallegos-Burton during a robbery at the store where she worked on Dec. 10, 2006. Doubleday has since rebuilt his life, dedicating himself to helping people struggling with addiction, homelessness and involvement in the criminal justice system.

Today, he is the co-founder of Creating Connections Recovery Services, where peer recovery coaches help people access resources, find stability and work toward recovery. He has also served as a violence interrupter and preventer with the city of Aurora’s SAVE program, which stands for Standing Against Violence Every Day.

But Doubleday’s journey toward redemption is connected to another family’s story of tragedy.

Patricia McCaughin, Gallegos-Burton’s daughter, eventually chose to give Doubleday a chance and supported his successful appeal to the Colorado Supreme Court in 2016.

McCaughin says nothing can undo what happened to her mother, but she believes Doubleday’s work today can make a difference for other families.

By mere coincidence, her own son, Joseph McCaughin, was involved in a robbery and killing in 2019. Now, she hopes he, too, can find his own path forward.

Having experienced gun violence through both her mother’s death and her son’s crime, McCaughin supports efforts to help others avoid a similar path.

Aurora’s SAVE program works to do that by connecting at-risk youth and young adults with resources, support and opportunities to prevent violence before it happens.

For Doubleday, that work is deeply personal. He says helping the community is one way to begin addressing the lasting effects of his past.

For McCaughin, it represents the possibility that something meaningful can grow out of unimaginable pain.

“Nothing will ever change what happened to Jutte,” McCaughin said. “But moving forward, I feel like she would have loved this.”

Learn more about Aurora’s SAVE program at AuroraGov.org/SAVE.