Medford Faith Communities to Join Nationwide Vigil to Remember Child Victims of Gun Violence Dec. 10th

| December 9, 2014 | Around Medford, Religious Life | No Comments

In 2012 art students at Medford High School created a special art installation with twenty-six pairs of shoes donated by school staff to honor the victims of the Newtown, CT school shooting.

Event Marks the Second Anniversary of Sandy Hook Elementary School Tragedy

To mark the second anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy in Newtown, CT, and to remember the 23,000 Americans killed by guns since December 2012, Medford faith communities as well as individuals representing schools and other local groups, will hold a vigil on December 10, at Medford City Hall (85 George P. Hassett Drive Medford, MA), 6:30-7:30 p.m.

Medford’s event is held in conjunction with vigils across all fifty states in partnership with the 2014 National Vigil for Gun Violence Victims, National Gun Violence Prevention Sabbath Weekend, and the Newtown Alliance.

The vigil at Medford, entitled “Building Pathways to Peace,” will include participation by children, choral music, a visual display dramatizing the results of gun violence, remarks by State Senator Patricia Jehlen and Medford School Committee Vice Chair John Falco, and readings by a diverse group of local faith leaders. It will close with a candlelight procession in front of Medford City Hall.

The Reverend Noah Evans, Rector of Grace Episcopal Church in Medford, one of the vigil’s organizers, remarked that “It’s urgent for us to keep the memory of Sandy Hook alive in our hearts, while acknowledging that gun violence is heartbreakingly commonplace throughout the nation. The impact on children, their families, and ultimately, everyone, has been devastating—so we must all take responsibility, here and now, for planting seeds of a culture of peace.”

Since the tragic assault in Newtown, CT, more than 350 children have died in gun violence—and during the same period, there has been nearly one school shooting per week.

– Submitted by The Reverend Noah H. Evans, Rector, Grace Episcopal Church