‘A deeper impact’
Island native strongly moved by Toronto shooting in nearby community
The horror of the deadly shooting in Toronto came to Laurie Murphy in bits and pieces.
She was at home at the time in the community of Riverdale, a short walk from where a
29-year-old man opened fire on a busy street in the Danforth community Sunday night, killing an 18-year-old woman and a 10-year-old girl and injuring 13 others.
Murphy heard siren after siren, uncertain if police cars, fire trucks, ambulances or all of the above were racing into action.
“It’s not unusual to hear sirens, but it is unusual to hear that many of them and have them go that long – several hours anyway,’’ says Murphy, a native of P.E.I. who has lived in Toronto since 2008.
“I didn’t know what had happened. I wasn’t right where the sirens were (heading). You don’t know what’s going on.’’
Turning to Twitter, she quickly learned that some person was shooting along nearby Danforth Avenue.
A good bit of time passed before Murphy learned that people had died, and many were injured, at the hand of a gunman.
“I wasn’t there, so I am imagining what had happened to people in the absence of information and first-hand accounts,’’ she notes.
“My heart is just breaking for people – people just enjoying the neighbourhood like I do on a regular basis.’’
Murphy is intimately familiar with the restaurants and cafes along Danforth Avenue. She hangs out along the popular stretch all the time.
She feels a closeness and a connection that spurred her to visit the area Tuesday afternoon with a friend.
She went to talk to people and see the make-shift memorial “because this is our neighbourhood, and we wanted to show our support and frequent the shops and restaurants that were terrorized - and just be together.’’
Murphy, 56, who works as the executive director of Project Bookmark Canada, should be known to many Islanders for her improv comedy, notably her skit comedy with the former Drill Queens.
She still does improv and will be lending her talents to a variety show being held to help raise money in support of a scholarship being created in honour of Reese Fallon. The 18-year-old high school graduate, who was killed in the shooting, was to have entered university in the fall.
“I have a sense of appreciation for the community and how it has handled this particular event,’’ says Murphy.
“People are really trying to help everyone involved.’’
Murphy says since the shooting, she has come to realize many Islanders live in this area, a fact she derived from all the ‘marked as safe’ postings on social media.
The large number of shootings so far this year in Toronto leading up to Sunday’s deadly event – more than 200 with 27 fatalities – did not go unnoticed by Murphy.
“It’s a horrible situation,’’ she says.
“It’s scary for sure. It resonates for me.’’
However, the shooting almost in her backyard has unnerved her even more.
“Having it happen so close has made a deeper impact on me, for sure,’’ she says.