Parkland Memorial Demonstration Held at Venango County Courthouse

| March 16, 2018

FRANKLIN, Pa. (EYT) – A Memorial Demonstration – in honor of the 17 Parkland, Florida students and faculty members murdered on February 14 – was held on the steps of the Venango County Courthouse on Wednesday evening.

The event was sponsored by Oil Region Rising, a local branch of the national non-partisan Indivisible group.

exploreVenango.com spoke to two of the organizers, Jan and Bob Hines.

They said they worked with Ralph Montgomery, Mike Wilcox, Beth Wilcox, and Bob Bickart, of Oil Region Rising, as well as Kathy Krouse and Pam Cyphert of Indivisible We Rise – West Central PA, out of Clarion, PA, to organize the event.

They stressed that the purpose of the demonstration was a memorial for those killed in Parkland, Florida, as well as to support local students and students around the nation who were protesting their lack of school safety.

“It was not a gun protest,” Jan Hines said.

“Mike [Wilcox] did address the issue of gun safety and assault weapons. He’s very pro-gun, unlike many people assume the group is.”

During the planning stage, the members discussed the event with the county commissioners, notified the Sheriff’s Department, and obtained the necessary permit through city hall.

“All the bases were covered,” Hines added.

The group wanted the event to support not only those mourning the Parkland shooting but also to support students concerned about school safety.

They began planning the event for the same day as the National Walkout Day and were glad when many local schools decided to have events, as well. They also wanted people working through the day to have the opportunity to attend an event in the evening, so it began at 5:00 p.m.

They decided to keep the event short, in part because of the cold weather.

Major Smith read the names and details of those who lost their lives in the Parkland shooting.

Ralph Montgomery provided a large photograph of the memorial at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School from a recent trip to the site.

The representatives from Indivisible We Rise – West Central PA provided a large handmade card to be sent to the Parkland students, and everyone at the event had the opportunity to add a note and sign their names.

The event concluded with the group singing Amazing Grace.

Hines said around sixty people attended.


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