A group of third graders in Missouri has been asked to sell raffle tickets for an AR-15 military-style assault weapon after a similar gun was used in a mass shooting in Parkland, Florida.

Community baseball team coach Levi Patterson told The Kansas City Star that the decision to sell raffle tickets was made before the shooting that killed 17 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

The weapon was reportedly donated by the co-founder of Black Rain Ordnance Inc., who is the father of one of the players.

Patterson told the paper that he initially considered raffling a different item after the mass shooting, but he changed his mind after receiving criticism from what he called a “hate group” on Facebook. After that, Patterson said that he decided to turn the AR-15 raffle “into a positive thing.”

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