{"id":191748,"date":"2025-09-30T07:24:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-30T07:24:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/191748\/"},"modified":"2025-09-30T07:24:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-30T07:24:10","slug":"tonight-we-break-the-silence-together-angel-families-unite-remembers-homicide-victims-news-sports-jobs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/191748\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Tonight, we break the silence together\u2019: Angel Families Unite remembers homicide victims | News, Sports, Jobs"},"content":{"rendered":"

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nBridget Irwin, lead advocate, speaks during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite at Brandon Park in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

Those words opened the Angel Families Unite National Day of Remembrance for Homicide Victims ceremony Friday night.<\/p>\n

This was the sixth year of operation for the organization and their fifth gathering, which began when lead advocate Bridget Irwin, having recently returned to the area, realized that there was no such support system for the survivors left behind following the violent death of a loved one.<\/p>\n

\u201cToo often, when people talk about murder victims, they focus on the crime, the headline or the trial, but what rarely gets spoken about is what lingers after, what it means to fold laundry for a family member who will never come home to wear it, what it means to set one less place at the table every single night, long after the casseroles from neighbors have stopped arriving, what it means to carry birthdays, graduations and weddings as shadows instead of celebrations,\u201d said Irwin, who at just 16 years old, lost her father to an accident involving a police chase.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a silence that follows violent loss, a silence that outsiders expect us to \u2018move past.\u2019 But in truth, we carry the silence into grocery stores, into church pews, into workplaces. It is a silence that can feel like exile. Tonight, we break the silence together,\u201d Irwin said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nA moment of silence is observed during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite at Brandon Park in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs you look around tonight, remember to set your grief down, even if just for a moment, and pick up the support that surrounds you,\u201d she urged those gathered.<\/p>\n

Also on-hand, were members of the North Central Bikers, whose mission includes helping to lighten the load of children going through often unimaginable situations.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe visit children for various reasons, and losing loved ones is one of those reasons,\u201d President Chad Brenner explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t work miracles. All we do is give that child 90 minutes of our attention to do whatever he or she wants to do, to forget what they\u2019re dealing with. It sounds simple, but it does work,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what we\u2019re all about, is trying to give them a few minutes, let them be children and play. And it doesn\u2019t stop there. A lot of the children that we visit have our personal numbers. I get lots of calls, my wife was on the phone the other week for two and a half hours. Sometimes that\u2019s all they need,\u201d Benner said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nA message of remembrance is shown on balloons at Brandon Park during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

Several angel sisters and brothers spoke of their loved ones, sharing the lessons they\u2019ve learned through tragedy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI look forward to this every year, because it\u2019s a way of me telling my sister\u2019s story, a way of keeping her alive,\u201d said fellow advocate Stacy Stetts, who lost her sister, Jennifer Weaver, at the hands of her husband on September 30, 1997.<\/p>\n

Stetts was consumed by hate for her sister\u2019s killer until a visit to her gravesite, which lay next to his, gave her the strength to begin her healing process.<\/p>\n

\u201cHer grave was flourishing and full of grass and flowers. I noticed Scott\u2019s was just a heap of dirt. All the way around, both graves were a row of daisies. It reminded me of Jen. Then a thought struck me, forgiveness,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cUntil that day, I had not been able to go to Jen\u2019s grave because Scott laid right beside her. It looked like Jen was trying to tell me to forgive Scott, like she did. It could be the only reason that her grave flourished whereas his did not,\u201d Stetts said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nOwen Dailey and his mother, Dawn look at a display of victim’s photographs at Brandon Park during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one\u2019s grief is exactly like someone else\u2019s. People who lose a child, it\u2019s a crappy club,\u201d Patricia Kreitz said of her son, Jakob Lee Haines, who was shot and killed by Brian St. John III.<\/p>\n

St. John later pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and aggravated assault.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt a lot of guilt for what happened, even though I know it\u2019s not my fault. I know I didn\u2019t do this, but he was my son, and I was supposed to protect him, and I couldn\u2019t that night,\u201d Kreitz said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all have things we see as signs. And I\u2019m thankful for organizations like this, who are around to help people out,\u201d she concluded.<\/p>\n

Referring to him as \u2018a hero,\u2019 and someone who loved everyone, Nichol Sites, advocate and sister of Ronald Dailey Jr., who lost his life, along with Alisha Seese, during a January 2024 double homicide, spoke of how comfort can be found in even the most unexpected places.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nOwen Dailey and his mother, Dawn look at a display of victim’s photographs at Brandon Park during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy most hated video was the police walking up to the scene. It was raw, uncut, and you saw everything,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes the videos bring a weird moment of comfort. For example, even after my brother was kidnapped and forced to drive at gunpoint, he still used a seat belt and he still remembered to put his turn signal on. His biggest fear was losing his license,\u201d Sites said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeeing those videos doesn\u2019t hurt as bad, because even in those circumstances, he was still alive,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Dailey\u2019s son, Owen, offered treasured memories of his father, who had a 15-year career with Independent Hose Company No. 1, rising to the ranks of lieutenant.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was my hero and my dad. He was someone to look up to when times were hard. He always made me laugh and have fun at the fire station,\u201d Owen said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nA moment of silence is observed during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite at Brandon Park in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember when we were supposed to go to the store to get a turkey, and we forgot all about that turkey and got Mountain Dews instead. Then we went home without the turkey,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just want to say I really miss my dad and love my dad so much. He was a really great guy,\u201d Own said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDad, I love you so much, and I hope you\u2019re having fun up there in heaven,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n

North Central Biker member Valerie Bennet read testimony prepared by Heather Lane, the sister of Katlyn Harp, whose life was tragically cut short by an act of domestic violence on on June 19, 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cKatlyn\u2019s life was worth more than the violence that it took away. She was a person who deserved better, and I ask you to remember her, to remember all the victims of domestic violence, and to fight for a world where no one has to experience what she did. I ask that we do our part. I ask that we speak up when we see abuse. I ask that we support the survivors, and I ask that we never forget that love should never ever hurt,\u201d the statement concluded.<\/p>\n

Jane Streeter read a testimony prepared by Skyler Sholder, whose husband, Robert \u201cBobby\u201d Sholder Jr., tragically died during a multi-vehicle crash along Route 54 in Montour County in July of last year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen someone you love is stolen from you, we still have to show up, we still have to cook dinner, go to work, answer questions from our children that we don\u2019t have answers for, and all while living with the ache of who\u2019s missing,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n

\u201cGrief comes in waves. Some days, it knocks you off your feet, but together, I like to think that we are stronger. There is a power in numbers. Alone, we are a single drop, but together, we are the ocean,\u201d Sholder\u2019s statement said.<\/p>\n

Streeter also offered her own experiences with violent crime, having lost close friend, Terry Minnier, a Lewisburg resident, to gun violence in 2018 in Lewisburg; and her brother, Anthony Gamache, who was killed during an attempted robbery, whom she credits with watching over her newborn daughter when she was sick, and more recently saving from serious injury during a traffic accident.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can do this. Remember the good times. Keep smiling, but without each other\u2019s support, we fall, we break, we hurt. So today we give God thanks for the time we had with our fallen members and smile for their memories,\u201d Holly Koch said, reading from a statement prepared by her brother, Michael Welch.<\/p>\n

The siblings\u2019 brother, Christopher Welch, was killed in a car collision in July 2021.<\/p>\n

Following a reading of names of those lost to the hands of violence, the attendees collectively recited the chosen words of the ceremony, \u201clive forever,\u201d as balloons ascended to the Heavens, a message from those below that their loved ones are not forgotten.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nVictim’s names are written on the sidewalk at Brandon Park during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nA memorial is placed on a bench in Brandon Park during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nBridget Irwin, lead advocate, speaks during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite at Brandon Park in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
\nVictim’s names are written on the sidewalk at Brandon Park during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by Angel Families Unite in Williamsport on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.<\/p>\n

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This is thanks to Jesse …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"RALPH WILSON\/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Bridget Irwin, lead advocate, speaks during the 6th Annual National Day of Remembrance hosted by…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":191749,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4,450,451,3,40071,452,453,111664,111663],"class_list":["post-191748","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-breaking-news","tag-breaking-news","tag-breakingnews","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-tonight","tag-top-stories","tag-topstories","tag-we-break-the-silence-together-angel-families-unite-remembers-homicide-victims","tag-we-break-the-silence-together-angel-families-unite-remembers-homicide-victimstop-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/191748","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=191748"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/191748\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/191749"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=191748"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=191748"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=191748"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}