GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY- A prayer vigil will be held Friday for the victims of the Walmart stabbings and anyone else struggling from the event.
The event is being put on by SALT, also known as the ‘Spiritual Activist Leading Together Coalition’.
Organizers said they wanted to provide a space for those grappling with the effects of the violence and come together as a community.
Lead community organizer Jessica Forster said the after effects are deep and have impacted most of us in some way.
She said since Saturday, people have been reaching out to their spiritual leaders asking for an opportunity to be in solidarity with the victims and first responders.
“Whether you were there, whether you were going to go to that shopping center, decided to go somewhere else, whether you knew somebody who was there, whether you were a first responder, whether you were a 911 dispatcher, or whether you heard the sirens and wondered what was happening,” said Forster.
She said the after effects are deep and have impacted most of us in some way.
“People are feeling a lot of different things, honestly. Of course, heartbreak and sadness, a sense of surprise and sadness that this happened within our small, tight knit community. And also, some feelings of uncertainty and maybe even fear,” said Forster.
She said since Saturday people have been reaching out to their spiritual leaders asking for an opportunity to come together in solidarity
“It’s critical because we need to be able to come together. We need to step away from feeling like maybe we’re alone in the grief or the trauma that we may have experienced as a community. And there is strength when we come together,” Forster.
Traverse City mayor Amy Shamroe said she’s grateful to the interfaith community to give people a spiritual way to connect.
“So I think that speaks.To our our community as a whole and how well we support each other. And in times of need and crisis. And we really think everybody in this community really. Showed up the way they needed to and even went above and beyond,” said Shamroe.
Cole Rogers works all over Northern Michigan and goes to Walmart often. He said he was there earlier the day of the stabbing.
“I was having talks with my wife from home. We were talking about how life is very short and it kind of gave you a different perspective on how sometimes we take for granted,” said Rogers.
He said he was shocked by how brazen the attack was and is keeping all those involved in his thoughts.
“But the fact that somebody felt confident enough and courageous enough to go in there and start stabbing people, it’s kind of beyond imagination,” said Rogers.