HARTFORD,  Conn. (AP) — A bid from former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle  Giffords and her husband to curb gun violence was cheered Tuesday in  Newtown, where last month’s massacre at an elementary school has prompted some  to mobilize for stronger gun control.

The  couple, which met with the victims’ families on a visit last week to Newtown,  launched a new political action committee on gun violence on the second  anniversary of a shooting in Arizona that killed six people and left Giffords  critically injured.

Monte  Frank, a father and an attorney who lives in the Sandy Hook section of  Newtown, said he is eager to help Giffords any way he can. He is organizing a  team of 26 riders to bicycle from Sandy Hook to Washington, possibly in March,  to keep attention on the issue of gun control.

“I  would have thought that Congress would have done something when one of their own  was the victim of unnecessary gun violence,” Frank said. “Now that she has come  this far with her rehabilitation that she is able to get out in front of the  issue, I think it’s awesome.”

A  gunman shot his way into the Sandy  Hook Elementary School on Dec. 14 and killed 20 young children and six  educators before committing suicide as police arrived. Police have not offered a  possible motive for the rampage.

Newtown  Selectman Jim Gaston was among the officials who met privately with Giffords  and her husband, Mark  Kelly, during their visit Friday to Newtown. He said many in town were  touched that the couple would share their experiences and predicted their  gun-control efforts would find plenty of allies in Newtown.

“I  think she’ll find support from the vast majority of my fellow Newtowners,”  Gaston said.

Gaston  said he owns rifles himself, and he enjoys shooting them, but there is no reason  for people outside the armed forces or law enforcement to have  semi-automatic weapons.

U.S.  Sen. Richard  Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, said that he welcomed the announcement  from Giffords and that he senses a change in the political landscape, with some  of his colleagues in Congress changing their views on the need for more measures  to prevent gun violence.

Blumenthal  said Tuesday that he plans to introduce federal legislation that would require  instant background checks for purchasers of ammunition — an effort he describes  as “keeping faith with the people of Newtown and across Connecticut.”

“People  who were directly affected by this horrific tragedy and have said to me again  and again and again, ‘Please do something, please do something about gun  violence, please do something about the guns,’” Blumenthal said.

Connecticut  Lt. Gov. Nancy  Wyman, a Democrat, commended Giffords and Kelly for “their remarkable  strength and leadership on this issue.”

“Their  visit to Newtown last week was an inspiration for the families they met and I am  confident their new effort will help our nation reach reasonable reforms that  balance the rights of gun owners with the need to protect the public from gun  violence,” Wyman said.

A  grassroots group called Newtown United has been meeting to discuss issues  including gun control. A spokesman for the group declined to comment Tuesday on  Giffords’ efforts.