More than 10,000 people attended a vigil at Dr. Phillips Center in downtown Orlando Monday night to remember the 49 people killed and others injured in this weekend's attack.
The vigil lasted two hours and was filled with words of encouragement, support, and love for all humanity.
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Community leaders, pastors, members of the LGBT community took to the stage in front of a heartbroken community to echo words of support and healing.
“We are going to try and pull through, stick together and love one another and come together as a community like what's going on here,” said Tony Caplick, who attended the event.
Caplick was not at Pulse when the shooting started at 2:02 a.m. But, three of his friends were, and they did not make it out alive.
“Eddie Sotomayor, Eric Ortiz, and then…um sorry,” Caplick couldn’t say the last name.
Later that night, all 49 names were read out loud for the world to know that behind each body was a brother, sister, husband, wife, father, mother, and person who just wanted to be accepted.
The question on everyone’s minds was "Why?" Why such hatred towards the LGBT community.
“When it's something like this, something that could have been prevented, some senseless acts for no reason that took lives just because someone's different from you, just because you don't agree with who someone is,” Serina Marshall said through tears. “It was a hate crime. It was something that could've been prevented. I can't understand it. I don't know how someone could just do that.”
On a night filled with so much pain, suffering and darkness, community leaders vowed to make a positive out of an atrocity.
“We need to make sure that we honor them because they didn't deserve to die this way,” Caplick said.
