Thousands gather to honor victims at Lake Eola event
Umbrella clutched in his hand, Juan Sanchez was hurrying toward the amphitheater on Lake Eola’s shore as light rain fell.
A year ago, he was supposed to celebrate his birthday at Pulse the night of the shooting. His friends were there, but they escaped safely. Sometimes he wonders what would have happened to him if he’d been there, he said.
He came to the “Orlando Love: Remembering Our Angels” event not to celebrate, but to unite with the community and support the survivors and victims’ families.
“We should never forget about the 49 angels that went to heaven,” Sanchez said.
He was among thousands of people gathered around the lake at the largest of the events during “Orlando United Day,” a 24-hour tribute filled with songs of love and encouragement for a city still healing from the worst mass shooting in
U.S. history. But most of the day’s events happened at the Orange Avenue club.
“It was important for me to start here at midnight and to end here at midnight,” said Pulse owner Barbara Poma.
As Pulse survivor Ramses Tinoco approached the Pulse nightclub early Monday, memories of June 12 clouded his head.
He still remembered hearing the gunshots. He remembered running for his life. But the place that has haunted him for a year had changed.
“It’s totally different now. It’s like all the terrifying and awful memories I had have been replaced with tonight, with this unity and all this love,” Tinoco said at the the first event, held just for survivors and family of victims. “We’re all still grieving, but this gave me some closure. I could smile and remember the 49.”
Ceda Diaz and her wife, Kaley Williams, drove down from Deltona with 49 candles — blue, purple and white, all with a sweet scent.
Before the ceremony began, they arranged them in a heart outside the club and lit them, one by one.
“We just had to do it,” Diaz said. “It was only right.”
Standing outside the club gave Diaz chills, she said. They had been here before, more often immediately after the shooting.
By the time the ceremony ended, the candles had melted into the pavement, still outlining a heart.
At midday, Pulse owner Barbara Poma, who built the club in honor of her late brother, told the club’s patrons, “It hurts my heart that your sanctuary was taken from you. But I know we are resilient.
“It was the darkest moment of my life,” she said. “There’s no describing the pain we all endured.”
Jennifer Decker, who owns a tattoo parlor in St. Cloud, had no connection to the victims prior to the shooting, but stood guard against any protesters and media at 19 of their funerals.
At Monday’s event, she began sobbing when the Orlando Gay Chorus sang “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten because it reminded her of the victims’ strength.
“We will have fight in us,” she said, fighting back tears. “We are not going to stop fighting for those kids.”
Jody Wells, 43, moved to Orlando from Denver two months before the shooting. He originally had planned to go to the nightclub that night, but opted for the beach instead.
Wells offered free hugs outside the gates of Pulse Monday afternoon with a rainbow-colored sign to members of the crowd. He said hundreds of visitors took him up on his offer.
“I just wanted to come out and help in any way I could,” Wells said. “... It’s important to find a glimmer of hope in tragedy, and to unite as a community.”
The Orlando Love event included remarks from community leaders, performances by Olga Tañón, Sisaundra Lewis, the Orlando Gay Chorus, Orlando Voices United, dancers, and songs and a solemn reading of the 49 names, paired with a haunting chime.
Dance, pop, Broadway showtunes —the ceremony’s musical selections echoed a common, uplifting sentiment: “Remember the love,” “What the world needs now is love,” “Seasons of Love” and a ebullient “Love Can Move Mountains,” which closed the event.
Tañón’s voice boomed as she sang “Hallelujah,” the song written by Leonard Cohen, in Spanish as six dancers, clad in billowing white, moved on stage with her. Then she paused.
“We have to forgive,” Tañón said. “We have to keep going. This is our life.”
Central Floridian Lewis, who drew national acclaim on TV’s “The Voice,” unleashed her powerful voice on an original song.
“Hands up to the sky,” she sang. “Applause, applause for my angel.”
Mark Sunderland, like many others, had a rainbow ribbon pinned to his chest. Being at Lake Eola took his breath away, he said, but he was feeling conflicting emotions.
“Are we celebrating or are we mourning? I think just the fact that we’re getting together matters,” Sunderland said. “We’re indomitable. People think we’re a transitory city, but we’re not. We’re not a group of people passing through. We’re a strong city.”
The day’s events then ended back at the nightclub, where Pulse looked more alive than ever, with colorful lights and candles.
Evelyn Ruiz, a frequent visitor to the club said she had mixed emotions Monday.
“But you can see how the community has come together,” Ruiz said.
Finally, the names of the 49 victims were read one last time. But this time, Neema Bahrami, Pulse event manager, urged the crowd to shout their names.
“Scream their names. Let them hear you above. Make them feel loved,” she said.
Poma told the crowd she hoped they had found a moment of peace and comfort.
“We close out this 24 hours we have dedicated to our families, to our victims, to our first responders, to you and to Orlando,” Poma said. “Welcome back to Pulse. Welcome home.” Staff Writers Paul Brinkmann, Amelia Cheatham, Alicia DelGallo, Lauren Delgado, Caitlin Doornbos, David Harris, Christal Hayes, Matthew J. Palm, Marco Santana and Harry Sayer contributed to this report.