Church remembers those lost to gun violence

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DuPage Unitarian Universalist Church joined other organizations and houses of worship across the country in commemorating the Jan. 8, 2011, shooting in Tucson, Ariz. Among the 25 attendees, (shown here) is a woman in the foreground who lost her nephew to gun violence at the Taste of Chicago. | Submitted

Updated: February 14, 2012 8:11AM

DuPage Unitarian Universalist Church joined other organizations and houses of worship across the country in commemorating the Jan. 8, 2011, shooting in Tucson, Ariz.

The Too Many Victims Lost to Handgun Violence Candlelight Vigil was coordinated by the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence, which operates under the umbrella of the Brady Campaign to Reduce Gun Violence. The event was initiated to increase awareness about the devastating impact of gun violence in our communities, while memorializing victims of gun violence everywhere, in addition to the Tucson rampage.

“It was also an opportunity for participants to talk about the toll that gun violence has taken on individuals and communities as a whole,” said Leslie Arno of Winfield, one of the volunteer coordinators of the local vigil.

Arno said that, because of DuPage Unitarian Universalist’s support of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence, they were asked to hold a vigil in the west suburban area while others were going on throughout the Chicago area.

“The rate of gun violence is increasing in this society. Just 30 miles to the east of us is a war-zone known as Chicago,” she said. “We thought it would be nice if we could somehow support our brothers and sisters in Chicago with this problem.”

Arno added that, unfortunately, the incidence of gun violence is increasing in the suburbs as well.

“We decided that this event fits the spirit of our religion and our church to support these kinds of things to help curb violence or stop it,” Arno said.

The event began with an interfaith service led by the Rev. Emmy Lou Belcher. During the candlelight vigil that followed, the names of victims of gun violence were read, including those impacted by the Tucson shooting and the 2008 shootings at Northern Illinois University.

Mim DePelichy of Lisle helped Arno coordinate the vigil. A victim of domestic violence and an ardent activist against gun violence, DePelichy said that most of the attendees at the vigil had a story to share.

“Almost every person I think stood up and told a story — a really really sad story about violence they’d experienced in their own life,” she said.

Among the 25 attendees was a woman who lost her nephew at a Taste of Chicago shooting, a mother who lost her son in a shooting, and the mother of a 10-year-old Chicago boy who committed suicide. Also in attendance was a woman who teaches on the west side of Chicago.

“She shared a story about a little boy who said ‘if I grow up, I want to be a boxer.’ Not ‘when’ I grow up, but ‘if,’” Arno said. “He lives in such a dangerous neighborhood that he knows there’s a great chance that he’ll be shot and killed before he’s an adult.”

DePelichy said that the event gave people an opportunity to connect with others with similar experiences.

“I feel like there are a lot of people out here who are affected by violence,” she said. “People who are victims are walking around in islands by themselves. They don’t know how to network. This was an opportunity to find a community of people who understood.”

Arno said the impact of gun violence is an issue she believes her church will continue to support.

“Most religions are about peace and justice and social causes and helping the community,” she said. “This is something that, as Unitarian Universalist, we would try to stay involved with.”

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