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It was a night to grieve, to remember and find strength in each other as Angel Families Unite held their seventh ceremony marking the National Day of Remembrance for Homicide victims at Brandon Park Friday night.
"None of this happens alone. Every family who shows up, every person who shares their story, and every advocate who gives their time, and every person who continues to stand beside Angel Families Unite is a part of what makes this work possible," lead advocate Bridget Irwin told those in attendance.
This year's ceremony marked the first since the passing of Lydia Gorman, who Irwin said was instrumental in getting the organization off the ground.
"Our paths first crossed when her son, Cody, was killed. I remember going to her home hoping to connect with her. She wouldn't even answer the door for me," Irwin recounted.
A few months later, Irwin would arrive with blue flowers in hand, Gorman would open the door, and a friendship quickly bloomed.
"When I moved home, Lydia and I began talking about starting a mission similar to the one that brought us together in Alabama, a place where families affected by homicide could come together, find support and begin to heal. From those conversations, Angel Families Unite was born," she said.
"We honor Lydia's memory by continuing the work she helped begin, continuing to lay the stepping stones for new families, offering them a place to find support, healing and hope, and reminding them that they never have to walk this journey alone," Irwin said.
"Angel Families Unite is a family. It is a place where we can come together, remember the people who were taken from us and be surrounded by people who understand the things that are often impossible to explain to everyone else," she said.
"We know there is no closure with homicides. However, there is a peace we learn to find," Irwin concluded.
Jane Streeter, whose brother, Anthony Gamache, was murdered in 2014 during a robbery carried out as part of a gang initiation at the age of 29, spoke of the injustice that sometimes comes with violent crime.
Though the alleged killer was found not guilty after crucial evidence was rendered inadmissible at trial, he was later jailed in a separate homicide case, Streeter said.
"That was my first experience with homicide. He was my brother, my ride or die," she said.
Sadly, Streeter would lose a close friend, Terry Minnier, to a muder-suicide just a few years later.
"For the longest time, when I had something good happen in my life, I felt guilty. I didn't want to celebrate it. I felt like it wasn't fair that my brother wasn't celebrating it with us," Streeter said.
"I spent the last 12 years in a very dark hole, feeling like something more needed to be done for us," she said.
Feeling the need to make a difference for herself and others in her position, Streeter, after speaking with her counselor at Guidespring Counseling, launched a free monthly support group for those affected by murder and suicide.
The group meets virtually on the last Thursday of each month.
"I've chosen to take the guilt and the pain of losing my brother and turn it into something positive, to help others know they're not alone in their journey and that we're in this together," Streeter said.
North Central Bikers President Chad Benner was on hand to talk about the role the club plays in helping to ease the burden shouldered by the youngest of those affected by such tragedies.
"We focus on children going through dark times, whether that is bullying, child abuse or dealing with the loss of a loved one. We simply ride in to wherever the child feels comfortable, and spend an hour playing whatever they want to play," he said, adding that members have even had their nails painted at times.
"Our focus is to just let them be a child for that hour, put everything behind them, and give them time to be a child," Benner said.
One such child is Owen Dailey, whose father, Ronald, along with Alisha Seese, was a victim in a January 2024 double homicide.
"Most people say he was a son, friend or brother, but I look up to him as the best dad I ever could have had," 12-year-old Owen said.
Owen spoke of how his uncle Andy, aunt Bev, cousins, Ryan and Andrea and his mother have continued to share stories, photos and videos of Ron.
Sounding wise beyond his years, Owen highlighted the need for forgiveness.
"If any of you has grievance against someone, forgive them, as the Lord forgave you," he said, quoting Colossians 313.
"Everyone makes mistakes. We all do. I forgive the people who did that to my dad. It's not okay that they did this. I'm still hurt and sad about it. But God tells me deep down to forgive them for what they did," he said.
Dailey's niece, Skylynn called him her favorite person, in a piece read aloud by Irwin.
"Some of my favorite things about my uncle Ronnie is how he treated everybody with respect, and how he would take the clothes off his back for anyone at any time," Skylynn's piece said.
"I miss him very much. It's hard to cope without him here, but some ways I remember him are by pictures and my rose and my shirts I have of him," her piece said.
Earlier in the evening Skylynn joined Irwin's stepson, Kayden Smith and his brother, Landon, to run the kid's table, pass out homicide pins and butterfly shaped seeds to be planted.
Items used during the ceremony were donated by Andi Kotch in honor of her daughter Amanda Finkbiner, who lost her life in a 2002 shooting, Irwin said
"For two years, I've been known by many as the girl with the brother who was murdered in the double homicide," Dailey's sister, Nichol Sites, an Angel Families Unite advocate, said.
"As much as I'd like to say there's much more to me, unfortunately, that statement is what's quite literally consumed my entire life for two years," she said, recounting the countless hours she has spent in court and therapy, as well as the bittersweet emotions surrounding finding out she was pregnant after years of her brother telling her he wanted another niece or nephew.
"As excited as I was, there was sadness too, because my biggest supporter wasn't here to share all the moments with. As much as I truly believe he sent her to me, I'm still grieving the fact that she'll never experience the love he had for his family, and she will never know him personally," Sites said.
Like Owen, Sites stressed the need to resist giving into anger, as hard as that might be sometimes.
"Feel your feelings. Be angry for a short time, but never hold on to it, because as we all know, life can truly be cut short," Sites said.
"Love beyond measure, chase your dreams, hug your family tight tonight. Solve the unresolved arguments, and never forget to live like Ronald Dailey Jr. because tomorrow is never promised," she concluded.
"We are gathered here today to not only remember how each person left us too soon, but to celebrate the incredible ways they lived, loved, and brought light into our lives," said Katie McDowell, whose son, Riley McDowell, was killed seven years ago.
"Today, as we all gather around, as we feel the heavy weight of their absence, we will choose to fill with our memories of their warm laughter and irreplaceable spirit," she said.
"My son, my miracle baby, had the biggest heart. You couldn't be in a bad mood, upset or sad around him, because his personality and his goofiness will change it within a blink of an eye," McDowell said.
Riley was killed just four days shy of going into the Job Corps.
"Seven years later, there's still no justice, no answers to why. But we all will never give up to get him the justice he deserves," she said.
"He was a good kid with a great sense of humor. Even though there are no words that can fully heal the heartbreak we are all feeling, we have memories which nobody can take away," McDowell said.
"That night I lost her, I lost myself, my family," said La'Shay Hawkins, of her mother, Jonette Crossley, who lost her life to domestic violence following a stand-off in Montoursville in early February.
"When she was supposed to be loved and cared for, the man took her life tragically," she said.
Hawkins then shared a letter she wrote dedicated to her mom in which she detailed the many things that have changed in Hawkins' life since she's been gone, including getting engaged, learning to crochet and starting a new job where she will become med tech certified.
"Your peanut, turned one, learned how to stand, walk, sing, count and talk nonstop," Hawkins said in her letter.
"My heart beats differently, and the days seem longer. Not a day goes by without me thinking about you and all the things you've missed in the past seven months. I know you're near when I hear Whitney Houston playing out of nowhere. She was your favorite," she said.
"I can still feel you, but it's not the same. I think about the what ifs every single day," Hawkins said.
"I miss you every day, mom. Please make sure you take care of my nana and your grandbabies up there," she said, signing the letter, 'love always, your Shay Shay."
"Today I stand before you not only as someone who has experienced loss, but someone whose heart forever changed on July 4, 2021," Holly Koch said of her brother, Christopher Welch.
Welch was 24-years-old when he was struck and killed by a juvenile driver.
"In one unimaginable moment, our family lost a son, a brother, a nephew and a friend. We lost a future full of wishes, laughter and memories that will never have the chance to be made," Koch said.
"Grief isn't something you get over; it's something you learn to carry. Some days the weight feels impossible. Other days you find yourself smiling at the memories," Koch said.
"Losing Christopher taught me that love doesn't end when life does. The people we love leave fingerprints on our hearts," she said.
"They continue to shape who we are through the lessons they taught us, the memories we cherish and the love we continue to share in their honor," Koch said.
"But our loss also reminds us of something else. Every choice matters. One decision made while impaired can change countless lives forever. It doesn't just affect the person behind the wheel; it leaves families carrying a lifetime of grief," she said.
"Today, I ask that we remember not only how our loved ones died, but how they lived. Remember their smiles. Remember their kindness. Speak their names, tell their stories, keep their memories alive," Koch said.
Welch's sister-in-law then stepped up to offer a moving rendition of Linkin Park's "One More Light."
A candlelight vigil and balloon release brought the night to a close.