Aurora, Illinois marks 5 years since deadly shooting at Henry Pratt plant
AURORA, Ill. (CBS) – Thursday marked five years since the shooting at the Henry Pratt company in Aurora.
The city organized a candlelight vigil on Thursday to remember the five men who were murdered: Russell Beyer, Vicente Juarez, Clayton Parks, Josh Pinkard, and Trevor Wehner.
Six other people were hurt in the shooting, including five police officers.
The shooter was chased by police and killed during an exchange of gunfire. The company eventually closed its Aurora plant.
Five years after the shooting in their workplace, former employees, family members, and first responders from that day gathered at the Henry Pratt plant to mark the milestone.
Their numbers were much smaller than the first vigil held just two days after the shooting.
"It was that rainy, icy snow," said plant manager Anita Lewis. "It was absolutely horrible, but everybody turned out."
But attendees, like Lewis, who was working that day, noted they are part of a growing group, referencing the shooting at the Kansas City Super Bowl parade on Wednesday.
"Having gone through this with all of you and my family, every time that happens, it brings back the Pratt thing, but it also makes me realize you know the pain and all that, and those are all real people with lives," she said.
It was a sentiment shared by Tom Wehner, who spent a moment looking at his son's name on a memorial. Trevor Wehner was killed on the first day of his internship at the plant.
"I know what people are going through and I just really pray that God comes alongside them during this time," Tom Wehner said. "It's horrible."
He said he tries to remember the good things on such a terrible day.
Others prayed for peace.
"There's still a lot of healing that needs to be done even after five years. People are hurting," Lewis said. "We have a really broken, broken country. So divided in so many ways and so all the more reason why I think people are getting together, praying and just loving on each other and holding each other up is so important."
On Thursday night, the emotional ceremony and vigil followed. Victims' families shared meories of their loved ones.
"My father was a kind, loving, godly man," Emily Pinkard, the daughter of victim Josh Pinkard, said at the ceremony. "He loved his job, his family, his friends. He also loved to sing. I got that from him."
The City of Aurora also unveiled a memorial bench featuring the names of the five people killed.
