Seven victims of Highland Park July 4th parade massacre honored at Central Business District memorial
HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. (CBS) -- Part of busy Central Avenue in Highland Park remained roped off Thursday night, as authorities continued actively investigating the massacre that left seven people dead and dozens wounded during the July 4th parade.
But just the other side of the yellow police tape at Central and St. Johns avenues, something pretty special has been happening.
As CBS 2's Charlie De Mar reported, hundreds of people came out Thursday night – taking a moment, leaving flowers. And they are determined not to let the center of town be remembered for the horror that unfolded Monday.
Central Avenue in downtown Highland Park saw appalling carnage on Monday. But it has now blossomed into a beacon of healing.
The seven victims who lost their lives Monday are forever memorialized – with cutout photos ringed by white garlands of flowers and laden with tributes.
Irina and Kevin McCarthy were a young couple who died while shielding their 2-year-old son, Aiden, from the bullets.
Stockbroker Steve Straus, 88, was still hard at work.
Nicolas Toledo was a proud grandfather in town from Mexico.
It was Eduardo Uvaldo's favorite holiday.
Katherine Goldstein was described by friends as a devoted wife and mother.
And on Thursday, Arlyn Stern left a stone to pay her respects to her cousin, Jacki Sundheim.
"Living through all this and what my family went through, and my cousins," Stern said.
She described the horror of what happened on Monday.
"They heard all these shots, and then all of a sudden Jacki, slumped over," Stern said.
Sundheim was a lifelong member and employee at NorthShore Congregation Israel. She was at the parade with relatives who did everything to try and save her.
"And right away, they tried to save her life," Stern said. "He had put her hand in her neck because she was shot in her clavicle."
As more people return to Central Avenue, the eerie sight of abandoned lawn chairs and strollers that once lined the parade route were finally removed. Meanwhile, the community now grieves together.
Sundheim's funeral will be Friday at her temple in Glencoe, where she was dedicated so many years.
A funeral service is scheduled for Straus on Friday at the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation in Evanston. Shiva follows his service at 4 p.m.
A family spokesman also reports the funeral for Uvaldo, 69, will be held on Saturday.