Fort Wayne community members hold vigil for Newtown victims

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - More than 100 people attended a vigil Saturday at the Allen County Courthouse in downtown Fort Wayne.

Strangers and neighbors came together to remember the 26 innocent lives that were tragically taken in Newtown, Conn. Friday morning, the second deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.

After murdering his mother, 20-year-old Adam Lanza went to Sandy Hook Elementary School, the school he attended as a child, and opened fire. He killed 12 little girls and eight boys, all ages six and seven, and six educators at the school.

“You never know when you drop your kids off and say the last 'I love you' or 'bye' to them, and that really hit us hard yesterday because it’s like 'Wow,' what if that would have happened here," said Jenny Rosalez, a Fort Wayne parent of two.

Brian Thornton organized the vigil Saturday evening as an outlet for community members. After going through a long custody battle over his son and temporarily losing custody, he said he couldn't fathom not ever seeing his son again.

“I could never imagine going through what 50 or 60 parents are going through right now, and I thought my situation was hard, and I thought this would be an outlet for the entire community to show Newtown, Connecticut that the Hoosiers of Fort Wayne are here next to them," Thornton said.

While this was an outlet for many, there are still parents around the country that had to have a painful talk with their children while still in shock themselves.

“We thought about pulling them out and homeschooling, but in today’s world, it could happen at a mall, a restaurant, a store, anywhere," Rosalez said.

However, community members say the best and most powerful thing they can do right now is pray.

“While there’s horrible devastation and destruction, God takes something messy and always makes it beautiful," said Thornton.

Police have released a full list of the victims' names and have the death toll at 28, including the gunman and his mother.