It’s been five years since they were taken.
Five years of birthdays they didn’t celebrate, dance classes they didn’t attend, band performances they weren’t a part of. Five years of life they never got to live.
But the memories and the legacies of the 17 people killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shine on. Their families and loved ones have made sure of that, as have the people of Parkland and Coral Springs. Once again they gathered on Tuesday at Pine Trails Park in Parkland to remember the 17 for the lives they lived — not just the way they died.
Sixteen-year-old Lauren Caggiano came to the memorial service with her mom Lynne. Lauren is a junior at J. P. Taravella High School in Coral Springs, where she said she spent the day processing the shooting and writing valentines to the victims.
“It lets me know that even after five years … people haven't forgotten,” Lauren said. “And that makes me feel better that even in 10, 20 years, nobody will have forgotten.”
Hundreds of people gathered at the park less than two miles from the school where the shooting happened. They wore shirts emblazoned with the words “Never Again” and “Never Forget,” and bracelets etched with the names of the 17 students, teachers and coaches who were killed — Alyssa Alhadeff, Scott Beigel, Martin Duque, Nicholas Dworet, Aaron Feis, Jaime Guttenberg, Chris Hixon, Luke Hoyer, Cara Loughran, Gina Montalto, Joaquin Oliver, Alaina Petty, Meadow Pollack, Helena Ramsay, Alex Schachter, Carmen Schentrup and Peter Wang.
On one side of the park, there were black-and-white photos of the victims that stood three feet high. Students and families lingered near the portraits and wrote messages to the 17, slipping the notes into boxes nearby.
Lynne Caggiano said she and her daughter Lauren make a point of coming to the vigil every year, to send a message to the families and survivors that they will not be forgotten.
“We care. We remember,” Caggiano said. “They were a part of our community, such an important part … and we just want to show the families that we care and we're not going to forget them.”
As in years past, faith leaders from across Broward County led the community in a prayer service to honor the victims, standing together as rabbis, imams and pastors offered words of comfort in different languages and faith traditions and recited prayers for the dead.
“Fixate on your light within and let it shine,” said Rabbi Bradd Boxman of Congregation Kol Tikvah. “In the darkness of difficult times, let it shine. In the midst of chaos and trauma, let it shine … from every soul and every heart, let it shine.”
Students from MSD performed Down to the River to Pray and the theme from Schindler’s List. Tribute videos played, showing photos of the 17 victims and pictures of the gardens, playgrounds and murals created in their memory.
The act of communal grieving is a powerful one, said Sarah Franco, the CEO of the agency that runs Eagles’ Haven Wellness Center, which was established in the wake of the shooting.
“Communal grieving also offers us something we cannot get when we grieve by ourselves. Through acknowledgement, validation and witnessing, communal grief allows us to experience feelings of heartache and pain that are deep and profound — and also momentary glimpses of hope,” Franco said.
In a sign of how pervasive gun violence continues to be in the United States, the community marked five years since the Parkland shooting just one day after another deadly shooting, this time on the campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing.
Rev. Steve Blinder of Royal Palms Christian Church prayed for the Broward community to find the strength to keep moving forward with love, even in the darkest of times.
“Bless us with compassion and give us the courage to live with the fear of losing and the sorrow of loss,” Blinder said. “Draw us closer to the heart of love. Touch this gathering and bless this community.”
As the sun set over Parkland and darkness fell, Pastor T.J. McCormick of Coastal Community Church urged the community to look for the light within themselves.
“Just because you're broken doesn't mean you can't shine,” McCormick said. “In a dark world, in dark days where there is bad everywhere … we get to be the good. We get to bring the lights that continue to shine and shine brightly.”
