In one sense it was finality. In another sense the day was one more way to continue the grieving process for family members and the community. Aurora Strong proves resilient in that it has a permanent remembrance of the five deaths in the shooting at the Henry Pratt warehouse in Aurora February 15.
The crosses of the five deceased at the warehouse had been decorated with flowers, care, and comfort, along Highland Avenue since the shooting until Sunday, March 31 when the crosses, provided by Aurora’s Greg Zanis, were carried by cargo van and by five volunteers to their permanent resting place at the David L. Pierce History Center site on Downer Place. The members of the Aurora Historical Society will give great care to the crosses and memorial memorabilia affixed to the crosses. They were expected to be moved from the first-floor ceremonial site to one of the upper floors of the Pierce Center this week. Russell Beyer. Clayton Parks. Vicente Juarez. Trevor Wehner. Josh Pinkard. They will be larger in death for the Aurora community than they were in life to the Aurora community. The five Pratt employees were residences of Oswego, Yorkville, Elgin, and Sheridan.
The Aurora Historical Society, led by John Jaros, executive director; Mary Clark Ormond, president; Greg Probst, treasurer, who led the procession of carrying crosses from the van to the first floor of the Pierce Center and gave closing remarks; greeter Perry Slade; and the rest of those who assisted, all played their roles properly and well. The van carried the crosses from the Highland Avenue Pratt site to the Pierce Center.
Aurora Strong always will remember.
• Reducing gun violence will be the focus of a discussion at noon Friday, April 5, at the Prisco Center in Aurora, 150 W. Illnois Avenue. Participants will include congressmen Bill Foster (11th District), Raja Krishnamoorthi (8th District), Sean Casten (6th District), Ron Hain, sheriff, Kane County, Deepak Malhotra, professor, Harvard Business School.
• Good weather for First Fridays in Aurora will not deter attendance with 24 sites in motion Friday.
• For Lent from Fasting and Feasting: Feast on oneness of all life and fast from apparent darkness!