HIGHLAND Park, Ill. — Thousands of people gathered in downtown Highland Park Tuesday for a remembrance ceremony and community walk one year after the mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade in this Chicago suburb.
Xochil Toledo, 24, and her family joined the crowd outside City Hall wearing t-shirts with an image of her grandfather, Nicolás Toledo, 78. The two were at the parade together last year when he was fatally shot.
“We’re here today to honor him,” she said. “It definitely is taking time to heal and process everything.”
Last year, a 21-year-old gunman armed with an AR-15-style rifle opened fire from a rooftop over the town square, killing seven people and wounding 48 others. The victims included Toledo; Katie Goldstein, 64; Irina McCarthy, 35; Kevin Michael McCarthy, 37; Stephen Straus, 88; Jacki Lovi Sundheim, 63; and Eduardo Uvaldo, 69.
People of all ages — many wearing blue “We are Highland Park” shirts and Fourth of July attire — attended the remembrance ceremony. Some cried quietly, couples leaned against one another and parents held tight to their children. Many became visibly emotional as the group sang the national anthem in unison.
“Even as the world moves on, the loss and the pain will never leave us,” Mayor Nancy Rotering said. “To each of you, know this, we continue this journey together.”
City officials read aloud the names of the victims and held one minute of silence. That’s all the time it took that day for the shooter to fire 83 rounds into the crowd with a Smith & Wesson M&P 15 semi-automatic rifle, according to city officials.
Katherine McKeag, 18, attended the ceremony with her mother and other members of her synagogue, North Shore Congregation Israel, in honor of Sundheim. McKeag recalled Sundheim as a kind, driven member of the congregation who watched her grow up.
“She really valued her community and took care of all of us,” McKeag said. Residents join the community walk in Highland Park, Illinois, on July 4, 2023.
A slew of elected officials, including Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, joined the group as the crowd walked the length of the parade route. People pushed strollers and wheelchairs and spoke among themselves along the fenced path through downtown.
Toledo said her family was silent during the walk. It was a healing journey, she said.
On the other end, the crowd spilled out into a community picnic, where sounds of music and laughter filled the park. As the solemn day turned toward celebration, some looked forward to the city’s events planned for the evening.
Year after shooting, Highland Park asks:What does freedom mean this Fourth of July? Residents join the community walk in Highland Park, Illinois, on July 4, 2023.
Gary Sinise, the Highland Park High School graduate and actor known for his roles in “Forrest Gump” and “CSI: NY,” is scheduled to put on a concert with his “Lt. Dan Band.” A drone show was set to follow, in place of fireworks.
The gunman, who traveled to Wisconsin and back before police apprehended him hours after the shooting, faces 21 first-degree murder counts, 48 counts of attempted murder and 48 counts of aggravated battery. His father also faces charges for helping the shooter obtain a gun license even though he had threatened violence.
In the wake of the shooting, Illinois passed a ban on dozens of high-powered semi-automatic weapons and high-capacity magazines. Survivors and victims’ families also sued the gunman and his father, the gun manufacturer, the gun store where the gunman purchased the weapon and an online gun distributor.