Parkland Golf & Country Club remembers the 17 lives lost In the 2018 Parkland shooting {Photo by Bonnie Hirschel}
By Sharon Aron Baron
When Parkland Golf & Country Club came up with the idea of commemorating the third anniversary of the tragic day at Marjory Stoneman Douglas shootings by lighting luminaries, they never imagined it would garner so much interest from the surrounding neighborhoods.
What began as one community’s way to honor the 17 victims of that massacre turned into an entire town’s evening of recognition.
On February 14, 2021, almost every Parkland community participated in “Light Up The Night,” along with neighborhoods in Coral Springs, individuals in South Florida, and other parts of the country.
Streets throughout Parkland were lined with luminaries. At 8 p.m., residents stood outside in silence for six minutes and 20 seconds to remember Alyssa Alhadeff, Martin Duque Anguiano, Nicholas Dworet, Jaime Guttenberg, Luke Hoyer, Cara Loughran, Gina Montalto, Joaquin Oliver, Alaina Petty, Meadow Pollack, Helena Ramsay, Alex Schachter, Carmen Schentrup, Peter Wang, Scott Beigel, Aaron Feis, and Christopher Hixon.
Several neighborhoods also held fundraisers. Parkland Golf & County Club sold t-shirts for Stand With Parkland. Miralago raised money for the MSD JROTC to honor their resident’s son Peter Wang., and Parkland Isles had a raffle/donation for the Gina Rose Montalto Memorial Foundation.
PGCC Communications Director Bonnie Hirschel said, “We encouraged everyone participating to take a photograph and post it on social media with the hashtag #lightparkland so the families of the victims could see just how much love and support we have for them.”
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