Santa Barbara remembers Orlando massacre one year later

A group gathered by the Chromatic Gate in Santa Barbara to remember the 49 people who were killed at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando.

Santa Barbara-based Pacific Pride Foundation hosted the vigil at 5:30 p.m. to honor and remember the victims who died one year ago today in the one of the deadliest mass shootings in recent U.S. history.

Reverend Julia Hamilton from the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara led a prayer and rang a gong 49 times to remember the victims. A man named Stuart Carey created an art piece called “Walk the 49” which included the victims’ names.

“I just had to express the grief I felt about this senseless murder, and that was the birth of the piece of work,” said Stuart Carey, artist.

Pacific Pride Foundation provides services, programs and trainings as the LGBTQ+ center of Santa Barbara County and the Central Coast.

If you missed the gathering, you are asked to show your support on social media by using the hashtag #HonorThemWithAction.