Two tearful Orange County vigils will be held Sunday evening for local victims of last week’s massacre on the Las Vegas Strip.
Teresa Nicol Kimura, a graduate of Placentia’s El Dorado High School and Cal State Fullerton, will be remembered on the back field of Sierra Vista Elementary School — at 1811 N. Placentia Ave. in Placentia — beginning at 6 p.m., the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday.
Kimura, 38, worked for the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration in Irvine. Gov. Jerry Brown’s office tweeted condolences on Wednesday, writing “Sad to learn @CDTFA employee Teresa Nicol Kimura was a victim of the Las Vegas shooting. We send sincere condolences to family & coworkers.”
Another candlelight vigil is planned for the Huntington Beach Pier, where people will gather at 6:30 p.m. at the pier at Main Street and Pacific Coast Highway. The Huntington Beach Vigil for Vegas is being organized by Stacy Massey and Lorena Ortega.
A message posted on their Facebook page says in part, “The purpose of this candlelight vigil is for our community to come together to mourn and honor the lives lost in Las Vegas during the massacre at the Route 91 Harvest Festival, to stand in solidarity with the survivors, to heal as a community, and to open up dialog … The names of the victims will be read by members of the community as we honor the lives they lived.
Please respect that this is an event that is meant to promote healing, community, and solidarity. Putting aside politics, prejudice, and biased rhetoric, we look forward to sharing space with all those impacted.”
Huntington Beach resident Andrea Castilla was killed while celebrating her 28th birthday at the festival. Castilla and Kimura were just two of several Southern California victims of the attack.
Stephen Paddock, 64, shot 58 people to death last Sunday in the worst mass shooting in U.S. history. Most of the victims were attending the Route 91 Harvest festival, a country music concert.
Paddock killed himself in his 32nd-floor room of the Mandalay Bay hotel, across the street from the outdoor concert venue, before he could be taken into custody.
–City News Service