DAYTON, Ohio — Just 36 hours after nine people were gunned down in the Historic Oregon District, there were signs that the community has started to heal.
People came to the mass shooting scene in front of the bars on First Street on Monday to remember the victims and try come to grips with the tragedy.
A large memorial is growing in front of Ned Peppers and the neighboring Hole In The Wall Bar.
A man brought flowers in the memory of his distant cousin, Logan Turner of Springboro, one of the victims.
The family of Monica Brickhouse, another victim, left balloons.
An interfaith group gathered at Levitt Pavilion downtown to pray and sing. Two members of World House Choir came up here from Greater Cincinnati.
“Frankly, when I hear people say, 'This doesn't happen here,' we just can't say that anymore,” said Susan Glas of Paddock Hills. “It happens anywhere. It doesn't matter how wealthy you are, your income level, where you come from. It can happen anywhere.”
Pam Schall of Cincinnati said it was tough for her to come, but she was glad to offer songs and prayers in hopes of lifting spirits.
“Some people here are in way more pain than others because of the immediacy of the situation for themselves, so I'm glad I came,” said Schall.
Dayton City Commissioner Darryl Fairchild, a chaplain at Dayton Children’s Hospital, was there, too. At this point he’s concerned about healing more than trying to identify a single motive to the killings.
He said motive almost doesn't matter.
“City over city and incident over incident, there's much more going on than one motive,” Fairchild said.
