AUGUSTA, Maine — In Augusta Sunday, 44 names were added to a memorial to honor Maine murder victims, including the 18 people who were killed in the Lewiston shootings last year.
Leaders of the Maine Chapter of Parents of Murdered Children held its annual ceremony to re-dedicate the monument.
Dozens of people gathered at the Holy Family Cemetery to honor their friends and family members who were killed.
“They too shall live and love, for they will always remain a part of us, so long as we remember them,” Arthur Jette, co-leader of the Maine Chapter of Parents of Murdered Children, said.
Jette read off every new name engraved in the Maine Murder Victims’ Memorial Monument.
The additional 44 names join the hundreds of names that have been etched in the monument since it was first dedicated in 2013.
The 18 people who were killed in the Lewiston mass shootings last year were honored during the ceremony.
Surviving family members received a rose and an embrace when their loved ones' names were read.
“The experience that they share is one that they've all had, so it makes it easier to discuss, easier to accept,” Jette explained.
One of the goals of the ceremony is to recognize a community for people who have suffered this kind of loss.
“They can speak with others, create their own network of support, have somebody they can call when they need to talk to somebody,” Jette said.
Shannon Richard attended the ceremony for her son, Daniel Ford-Coates, who was killed in Bangor in April.
“It is unbelievably sad,” Richard said.
But on Sunday, she honored her son’s memory, and those he touched along the way.
“He was friends with every single person he ever met, and he was their support every time they ever needed something,” Richard said.
Now, many of those friends were there at the ceremony to support him.
“This unveiling and this monument itself is a really great recognition,” Richard said. “Just their name permanently somewhere that says 'we remember them' is really important.”