Candlelight Vigil Held For 3 Victims Of Homewood New Year's Eve Shooting
PITTSBURGH, Pa. (KDKA) -- Nearly 100 people holding candles walked the streets in Pittsburgh's Homewood South neighborhood for a vigil.
Three people, including a child, were shot to death in the community on New Year's Eve.
The families of the victims expressed raw emotions of anger and outrage at the senseless violence that took young lives filled with promise.
"For everyone not to be up in arms and sick and tired of this, it's extremely alarming and upsetting," said Mubarik Ismeali, president of Homewood Community Sports.
A large crowd filled with heartbreak lined Gerrit Street in Homewood on Monday to honor 28-year-old Nandi Fitzgerald, 28-year-old Tatiana Hill and 13-year-old Denzel Nolan Jr.
The young teen was a long-time participant in community youth sports and was loved by his family and coaches.
"This is a kid who started with our organization when he was 4 or 5 years old, a kid who was first up on the field and the last one to leave, was known by the community. It's a tragedy," Ismeali said.
Family, friends and the community marched several blocks to the Homewood football field.
"I felt like I lost one of my own kids," one of the boy's coaches said. "I'm a man. It takes a lot to make me cry. I cried, I was hurt, I'm still hurt."
Nolan and his young mother were among the three killed in the tragic killings.
"What they did to mine, nobody deserves all that," the boy's grandmother said. "I'm going to have some sleepless nights. I think I'm going to leave Homewood because I'm going to miss everybody."
In the words of one of the coaches, no child should ever be buried, and every single person in a community must get involved to create a safe environment.
Allegheny County police and homicide detectives continue to investigate.