NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A small group set up a memorial for people they've never met.
They placed nine pictures on the Pedestrian Bridge and surrounded them with candles and flowers. They were the nine people murdered in the Charleston church massacre.
More than 500 miles from Charleston, the folks attending the vigil in Nashville said the people slain were just like them.
“Her principal said she was an advocate for her students and just as an educator myself she in particular resonated with me,” said Crystalline Jones, holding a photo of Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton.
Vigil organizer Lenny Sharlet said he didn't want another sun to set without Nashville showing Charleston its people stand with them.
“We're feeling the aftershocks here, and this is something that affects all Americans,” he said.
The vigil’s location on the downtown pedestrian bridge was a nod to the Charleston ceremony where thousands came together after the massacre.
It was a time to pray and to remember, showing unity and love can cross a nation with no travel time.
Some spoke of eradicating hate, but most concentrated on love and forgiveness.
“How we can change our hearts so that someday these things happen less and maybe someday don't happen at all,” Sharlet said.
They said one day people should forget their anger but never the ones who were lost.
