As the Lorain community continues to grieve, they told me that they found solace at the city’s popular ‘Rockin’ on the River’ outdoor concert series.
A vigil was held for the fallen Lorain police officer.
“When we’re all here, enjoying music, all our worries just kind of melt away, and we pay attention and we dance and it brings people together, and I think it’s a beautiful thing,” she said.
Vatafu is the lead guitarist for Luminescence, a Northeast Ohio-based band that he describes as glowing and sparkling during each performance.
“The stages keep getting bigger and bigger and this is the biggest one I’ve played yet,” Vatafu told the audience.
While Vatafu wishes their presence in Lorain had been under better circumstances, she believes that feeding people’s souls with music can be beneficial during difficult times.
“I believe that music brings great comfort to everyone. “I mean, I use music for comfort, and it just brings people together,” Vatafu explained.
Since Wednesday, Ohio Fraternal Order of Police Vice President TJ Assion said the community has been dealing with a difficult situation after authorities announced three Lorain Police officers were ambushed in an attack that resulted in the death of Officer Phillip Wagner on Thursday.
“While everybody is still sad and the mourning is just starting to set in and will continue for a while, it’s still important for family, for community to gather together and to continue [to] move forward,” Assion told CNN.
Following the recent tragedy, ‘Rockin’ on the River’ organizers posted on Facebook, informing users that they nearly canceled Friday’s event due to their involvement with the Lorain Police.
However, following some discussion and collaboration between Command Staff members and the FOP Lorain Lodge #3, fans such as Michael Dandrea were able to continue enjoying outdoor concerts.
“It’s really amazing to see how they can come together and still find joy,” Dandrea told me.
Organizers intend to donate a portion of their proceeds to the Lorain Police Officers Charitable Foundation to assist the families of the three officers.
In the meantime, Assion stated that the State FOP Foundation and the Lorain FOP Foundation, also known as Lodge #3, will accept donations until September 1.
“The other two officers are heroes, and they will go through medical procedures. They’re going to have surgery. They’ll have to go through therapy and physical training, and the road to recovery will be long,” Assion said.
Assion also stated that their brothers and sisters in blue would be supported.
“We have their back and we’re going to be there for them,” Assion told them.
If you want to give back, ‘Rockin on the River’ will donate some of the proceeds from Saturday’s Black River Reggae Fest to the families of the three officers.
