Survivors held a special memorial at Pulse Nightclub Thursday evening in the wake of the school shooting that killed 19 students and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas. 

What You Need To Know

  • People came to Pulse nightclub to remember those who have lost their lives due to gun violence

  • Survivors of the Pulse shooting remembered the feelings that came afterward

  • Members of the community called for action on stopping gun violence

Several people from the surrounding community gathered to offer prayers for all who have been affected by gun violence.

“(This) definitely triggers me again with this mass shooting,” member of the onePulse Foundation Megan Dowdell told Spectrum News 13.

Dowdell remembers vividly the painful days following the 2016 nightclub terror attack shooting by Omar Mateen. As a mental health counselor, she volunteered to speak with the families affected by the violence then. She knows those same feelings are present right now in Texas nearly six years later.

“When you’re that close to a big tragedy, you feel like you just have to do something,” Dowdell said.

For Dowdell, showing up to the memorial is a reminder of how much work needs to be done. She says it hurts knowing such a similar situation is being felt elsewhere. On Tuesday, Salvador Ramos went into a Texas elementary school with two AR-style rifles and killed 19 children and two teachers before he was killed by law enforcement.

Several other people at the Pulse Nightclub expressed similar thoughts as Dowdell did, consoling one another and honoring those who have lost their lives.

Jim McDermott showed up to pay his respects to a friend who survived Pulse, but has since passed away from an aneurism. He says he does not want memorials like the one at Pulse to become a common occurrence in the country.

“Everyone here in the pulse community supports everyone in Texas, and Buffalo and California, where these awful attacks were recently," he said.

McDermott believes now is the time for change and has vowed to use his voice to help bring that.

“We don’t need any more thoughts and prayers. What we need is action, and we need to be angry, because this is outrageous. Our children are dying,” he shared.

The group wrapped up their night by reading out the names of those who were killed at Robb Elementary at Uvalde. The memorial lasted around 30 minutes. Organizers say they want to do everything possible to ensure schools and venues like Pulse remain safe in the future.