SANTA CLARA, CA: It was a cold, frosty night. The air was crisp and redolent with the smell of candle wax, grief and loss. Wednesday, December 19, people from all over the Bay Area gathered at Live Oak Park in Rivermark, Santa Clara at an emotional candlelight vigil to honor the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy. Organized by South Bay residents Harbir Kaur Bhatia, Jaya Gautam and Kathy Watanabe, the event was a forum for people to share, grieve, support and, hopefully, help each other deal with the tragedy and in turn be a comfort to others.
More than 60 mourners from Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, Cupertino, Milpitas, Fremont and as far as Pleasanton gathered in a children’s play area as a symbolic gesture as the names of the 26 victims of the Sandy Hook School shooting were read out aloud.
Harbir Bhatia said, “Pain has been felt by people throughout this nation. They are children of the whole family that is America! Each of us must take action to prevent such violence, and instead create a safe future. Whether it’s focus on the gun laws, family unit, or mental health, it’s everyone’s responsibility.”
Kathy Watanabe wanted everyone to, “Commit 26 random acts of kindness in memory of the 26 victims in the hope that by everyone taking part and paying it forward, good can one day triumph over evil.”
Jaya Gautam said, “We need to mourn the children and teachers of Sandy Hook. Each one is an irreplaceable part of our lives now, but we should not lose our faith in humanity and in each other. Remembering the heroic acts of the teachers as they tried to save their students should be our inspiration as we make our community, our nation stronger.” She also read out a poem in memory of the victims, ‘Hard to Believe’.
Pastor Jack Treiber of North Valley Baptist Church and Kent Litzau of South Bay Church led the group in prayer and expressed how hard it was for people as parents to understand what had happened. Jessi Kaur, children’s book author and founder of In Global Synergy Now, representing the Sikh faith, addressed the crowd about the importance of ending gun violence and supporting each other as a nation.
Santa Clara Mayor Jamie Matthews emphasized the importance of love of family and especially children. San Jose City Councilmember Kansen Chu shared how he is working on putting in place a gun buyback program.
A Rivermark mom, who did not want her name published, spoke from her heart when she shared the story of losing her son, Matthew, back in 2008. She expressed how the love and support of the community caused a ripple effect amongst everyone they dealt with while her son was hospitalized. Expressions of support, no matter how small, will help uplift and heal not just these families in Newtown, CT but their future generations as well.
Aparna Gulati and Pratap Whig, at the vigil with their two young children, felt: “We can’t bring back those little ones. We can’t even fathom what their loved ones are experiencing. But we sure can send our prayers, our love and our positive wishes to them while attempting to resurrect our own faith in the goodness of humanity.” Deeply impacted by the tragic shooting, Kiran Chadha and Himanshu Singh, who helped set up the vigil onsite, said they were happy to help.
The ‘first responders’, the police and other emergency personnel, who respond first to any emergency situation were represented by the presence of the Santa Clara PD.
At the vigil, adults and children were encouraged to express their feelings by signing or drawing on a large canvas. Children may and will find it especially difficult to comprehend the tragedy, especially since the victims were school age children. By writing or drawing on the canvas and making cards, it was an opportunity for them to express and address some of their feelings through art and sharing. Stuffed animals, books and other toys were also collected to be donated in the name of Sandy Hook Elementary School to Toys for Tots and the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
It was a cold, frosty night. The air was crisp and redolent with the smell of candle wax, grief and loss. It was also filled with a sense of sharing and a community coming together to stand in support of another community almost 3,000 miles away. We will remember, we will not forget, and hopefully, we will learn how to prevent another tragedy like Newtown from happening again.
India Post News Service
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