‘We have not forgotten’

Music and tributes honored the 49 people killed by a gunman in the Pulse nightclub as Orlando marked the second anniversary of the massacre.

At a ceremony to mark the passage of two years since 49 people were killed at Pulse nightclub, the club’s owner delivered a message to those who survived the massacre and the families of those killed: “You are never alone.”

“We have not forgotten what you’ve endured and what you are still enduring,” said Barbara Poma, who since the June 12, 2016, mass shooting has founded the onePULSE Foundation and spearheaded the construction of a memorial to the victims, survivors and first-responders.

“Your stories became a part of each of us,” Poma said. “Your heartbreak became our heartbreak.”

Tuesday’s ceremony featured a variety of tributes to the victims, including a video with brief messages about their lives and dreams read by family members, which moved some in attendance to tears.

Hundreds attended the event, which the onePULSE Foundation hosted.

Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer told those assembled that Pulse’s legacy was not defined by the man who carried out the killing there, but by the community’s response in the wake of the tragedy.

“Pulse was a violent act carried out by a single individual, but the response to that act of evil and act of hate has been made up by thousands and thousands and thousands — maybe even millions — of individuals deciding to show what the opposite of evil looks like, and it looks like love,” he said.

Dyer said it will be up to each person affected by Pulse to decide how to honor the iconic gay nightclub’s legacy, be it through political action, urging others to vote, supporting a nonprofit or combating gun violence.

The service began with a performance of John Lennon’s “Imagine” by the Orlando Gay Chorus, one of several musical elements of the evening event. Lass Bass, the former NSYNC singer and board member for the onePULSE Foundation, performed poetry.

Members of the victims’ families read brief statements about their lives and dreams, which were recorded and played during the service.

Many who attended the event wore rainbow colors or Orlando United T-shirts. Some knew the victims or had lost loved ones, others simply came to honor their memories.

Nancy Ferguson, 54, was one of a flock of people who attended the ceremony dressed in angel wings. “We’re here to show love and respect for the angels that we lost that night,” Ferguson said.

Adam Toronto, 37 of California, was in Orlando for work. Instead of going to Universal, he decided to come to the ceremony. “Moving, impactful, amazing,” he said of the Pulse memorial.

Toronto signed his name under the iconic Pulse sign.

Isaac DeJesus, 17 of Davenport, wore a transgender flag as well as several Pulse buttons and an “Orlando United” shirt. “It helped me knowing there are people who support you,” Isaac said of Pulse. “I can be me.”