Editor’s note: The following was written and read by the author at a candlelight vigil held this past Saturday night in Kingman for Mohave County, honoring the people of Minnesota and remembering lives lost.
Tonight, we gather in the quiet glow of candlelight.
We remember lives lost.
We honor those harmed.
We hold grieving families and suffering children in our hearts.
We speak the name of Alex, remembering his life and his humanity.
We lift up children like Liam, and all who are frightened, hurting, or unheard.
Each flame we hold is small — but together, they push back the darkness.
We come from different traditions, different beliefs, different stories.
Some of us pray. Some of us hope. Some of us stand because conscience called us here.
But together, we affirm this truth:
Every human life has dignity and worth.
We will not be hardened by hate or numbed by dehumanization.
We are all one humanity.
No nationality, skin tone, or accent makes one group better or worse than another.
We are all human. And that simple truth should guide how we treat one another in all times, places, and circumstances.
Tonight, we choose not to look away, even when we are told not to believe what our eyes have seen.
We choose to witness, even when we are told to be silent.
We choose compassion over indifference.
Because no child should suffer.
No family should be torn apart.
No life should be treated as disposable.
Even when we are few, even when we feel outnumbered, even when the world seems indifferent — our light matters.
Our witness matters.
Every small act of care, of courage, of speaking truth pushes back the darkness.
We remember these words:
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
— Martin Luther King Jr.
Tonight, we choose light.
Not denial, but light.
Not silence, but light.
Not hatred, but courageous compassion.
And now we go forward, committed to acts of humanity — words of comfort, calls for accountability, protection for the vulnerable, and dignity for every person.
We leave this place determined, together, that fear will not define us, cruelty will not guide us, and darkness will not take over our country in this time.
We have carried the light here tonight.
Now we will carry it forward — in our voices, in our choices, in our lives.
And we will not let it die.
Verlinda Foster
Eulogizing people that foolishly put their lives on the line for illegal murderers, rapists, sexual predators, child traffickers, et al, is beyond the pale. No one, absolutely no one, wanted Good or Pretti to die. But they reaped the consequences of interfering with federal law enforcement. Somehow these people are convinced they’re doing the “right” thing, either by money, mental impairment or both. I’m absolutely sure, if one of the victims of these illegal criminals was their friend or family member, they would have a totally different viewpoint, just as the “Angel Moms” do.