“Roanoke Remembers” fosters healing with stories and inspiration.
by Jazmine Otey
“About 25 years ago, a 357 was held to my head.”
Silence washed over the crowd as Shirley Petty continued. “That day God told me, ‘Don’t show any fear, if you show any fear, you’re gonna die.’”
Sunday evening, Petty was one of many who shared their story at Roanoke Remembers. The event held in William Fleming’s Dickinson Auditorium provided support and a space for healing for individuals affected by gun violence.
Through the leadership of Vice Mayor Joseph Cobb and the strategic planning of a gun violence task force, the event was created to memorialize victims lost to gun related incidents whether due to aggravated assaults, suicidal behavior, or accidental firing of a gun.
“My greatest hope is that people will realize that we’re all in this together,” Cobb said. “We’re a city together. Where we have differences, we want to work through those in a positive way.”
Through spoken word, singing, storytelling, and dance, Roanoke Remembers brought together a diverse group of audience members who didn’t hesitate to show their support for those who came forward during their moments of vulnerability. Among them was Tenysia Rivera, 19, who recalled the vivid memory of discovering that her father, John Wilfred Rivera Jr., had been shot at a convenience store while she had been traveling back from Japan with her mother and younger brother when she was just 8 years old.
The news simply reported it as one Black person killing another and the aftermath thereof. However, the more troubling and personal aspects of the dilemma, involved someone with a gun who “took a father, took a husband…a brother and a friend,” Rivera said with tears in her eyes.
Shortly after receiving praise and comfort from the audience, Rivera brushed away her tears and smiled. “It’s a touchy subject, but I’m okay and I have made peace with it. I know that God works in mysterious ways.”
Following Rivera’s story was a song performance in remembrance of those lost to gun violence. A large screen flashed names and pictures of nearly 80 victims of such atrocities.
The names included Arayah Leigh Lipford, a toddler who had been fatally shot mere days before her second birthday in July 2015; Robin Williams, a 22-year-old young woman who had been gunned down by an ex-boyfriend in June 1996; and Jermaine Hopson, 26, killed in a shooting at Monster’s Bar and Grill in October 2016. These tragic events represent only 3.75 percent of the names that were shown.
Rev. Kevin McNeil, of the gun task force, explained that they wanted to have an event that would both remember victims but also offer support to family members and friends affected by such unfortunate circumstances. He continued to explain that this also includes family members of perpetrators who often have lost their loved ones to jail or worse.
McNeil’s exposure to a gun related incident at age 14 is what prompted his determination to help others move forward and heal from such events and be a member of Roanoke’s gun violence task force. Years later, he can still vividly recall the details of the traumatic experience.
“We were just standing playing basketball and my guys were sitting around playing ball talking to each other when this guy walks up and shoots the guy sitting next to me in broad daylight,” McNeil said. “I can remember the sound, I can smell the blood, I remember what it felt like. I was experiencing shock, disbelief, fear, confusion, anger, grief, sadness! One minute we’re talking with our friends and the next minute, he’s gone and there’s nothing we can do about it.”
According to Rev. Alonzo Smith, another task force member, the group aimed to provide residents with resources as well. With Smith’s aid, grief counselors from Price Memorial AME Zion were on hand during the event. The event’s program listed more than 10 sources for grief counseling.
“Over the course of a day anything can trigger that memory, anything can trigger that grief,” Smith said. “Everybody heals differently and at a different pace. Everybody doesn’t walk at the same pace. Some can walk slower. Some can walk faster.”
Succeeding Roanoke Remembers, audience members gathered outside of the auditorium to view bulletin boards that prior to the event were filled to the brim with pictures and quotes dedicated to gun related deaths. On the board, were the smiling faces of daughters, sons, sisters, brothers, uncles, and aunts, each contrasting with the other. In a drawing, a victim was pictured in a blue and yellow football uniform, the number 49 stretched across.
Another had a bright smile and camera nestled on his shoulder. There was a man smiling along with his family members, a baby girl in a white head wrap and a father embracing a son during his graduation. Each person pictured was unique from the other, yet each individual was bound together by the fact that their life had been unrightfully–stolen by a gun.
“We want to reduce these incidents and hopefully at some point end acts of gun violence and any acts of violence. And that’s a big task, but I think if we’re really thinking toward it then we will see significant reductions,” Cobb said.
