The Winder Village community shared their sense of grief, loss, and hope for the future Sunday night at a beautiful candlelight vigil in front of the home where three young men were gunned down last week.
The community catharsis closed out a weekend in which the memories of Tyrone Moss, 31, and Joshua Johnson, 29, were kept alive through the glow symbolically represented by the dozens of candles at the foot of the driveway where the brutal shooting took place.
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Prayer, song and sharing of how the young men touched others in life, and now in death, synergized under evening dusk clouds with rays of the remaining sunlight, like that of hope, beaming down on the hundreds attending.
Johnson’s sister, Keisha, provided the message that it was okay to laugh during the vigil when she shared ‘Josh’s’ greeting to her when she called him. “What’s up with the wuz up?” she said as the many that knew him laughed and nodded at the familiar greeting he had for those he talked to.
Perhaps the breeze of change reflected in the flickering flames of candles will come to the community crying out and seeking answers for this and other recent area tragedies. Only months ago, many at Sunday night’s event, attended a similar vigil following the murder of Ebony Talley, her unborn child, and young daughter R’mani Rankins who were brutally murdered in their apartment on Bristol Oxford Valley Rd.. The threads running through both communities in Bristol are the fabric of grief and mourning making up both then and Sunday night.
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Tears were wiped away and hugs were given, as a loved one attempted to say the point of the night, to bring “everyone together.”
A separate prayer vigil held Thursday night was led by Rev. James Evans of the Norton Avenue Baptist Church. Reality creeped its way back in by Sunday night though, showing itself in many forms and expressions even in the inquisitive and pure nature of a young girl asking, “where are Josh and Tyrone, Mommy?”
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One man rose to speak at the microphone that laid on the front lawn, but was unable to fight through his tears. A man standing in the crowd encouraged him, and then turning to a woman nearby and saying, “he loved that boy with all his heart, this must be so hard for him.”
Truth was, it was hard for everyone, as neighbors continually stressed throughout the past week of heightened press coverage. Residents told LevittownNow.com it had been a heartbreaking event for the tight-knit community.
Johnson, whose daughter celebrated a birthday Sunday, and Moss whose 32nd birthday would have been July 14, were celebrated by the crowd and a beautiful ‘Happy Birthday’ melody was sung along to.
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“I think this event was meant to tear us all apart,” one loved one said. “But I don’t think its worked, instead its brought us all closer together.”
Brittany McClain, one of the organizers of the candlelight remembrance and a social worker for a Bristol Township-based nonprofit, said after the ceremony ended that the fundraising goals for the weekend were surpassed. She further added the community came out strong with support, as she glanced to the overwhelming crowd that remained on Winder Drive.
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McClain’s group, Come Together Everyone (CTE) has been an instrumental way at reaching the victims loved ones via Facebook, in an attempt to restore hope and good faith in the neighborhood.
The third shooting victim Lamel Duffy, 24, of Levittown, remains in the care of medical professionals in a local hospital. It was Duffy, who after being shot in the back, ran to a neighboring house to get help.
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As the vigil ended, a song written to memorialize the shooting death of hip-hop star Tupac Shakur played in the background. By the end, a question remained, yet unspoken, Sunday night. Who did this and why? That’s a question police were still investigating as of Monday morning.
The shooter(s) remain at large, while residents and family members continue to insist that “everybody is a suspect.”
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Related:
- Second Shooting Victim Dies in Hospital
- Triple Shooting Investigation: ‘We Have Not Ruled Out Anything’
- PHOTOS: Police Probe Triple Shooting in Bristol Twp.
- Home Invasion May Have Sparked Deadly Shooting
- Residents say “Everybody is a Suspect” Regarding Fatal Shooting
- UPDATED: Shooting Victims Identified
