Tampa police chief, chaplain hold vigil following Texas school mass shooting

TAMPA, Fla. - Tampa city and religious leaders gathered for a vigil praying for the victims and those suffering from the tragedy that played out in Uvalde, Texas. 

From the ones who were at the vigil, which took place at Lykes Gaslight Park in downtown Tampa, there was a lot of pain and heartache for those lost during the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. There was also anger that these types of mass shooting keep happening.

"I'm tired of praying. I'm tired of politicians hiding. Behind thoughts and prayers, but offering no action," Pastor Glenn Dames said. "That could have been your grandchild or your child. At what point do we say enough is enough?" 

Days before a gunman killed 19 children and two adults at the Texas elementary school, another gunman killed 10 people in a grocery store in Buffalo, New York. 

Among those who gathered for the vigil was Patricia Brown, whose heart broke again because she knows what it's like to lose a child. Her son, Devante Brown, died after he was hit by a stray bullet on his way home from work in 2020. 

"I go through it every day. You know, now they get to go through it. You see another parent go through something senseless like this, it just is devastating," Brown said. 

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Those in attendance are urging national, state and local leaders to find common ground and make changes that can help prevent future mass shootings.

"How many more times must we have this same scenario before we decide enough is enough?" asked Rev. Clarence Nathan, the chaplain for Tampa Police Department who organized the vigil. "It's amazing that that parents have to continue to experience PJ's left hanging on the back of a door that will never be put on again; shoes and clothes that will never be dressed in again; a mother longing for being able to hold her baby and that longing goes unanswered. How long before we say 'enough is enough?'"

Chief O’Connor, Mayor Jane Castor and US Representative Kathy Castor were also at the vigil among other city and faith-based leaders.  

On Wednesday, Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister along with Tampa Police Chief Mary O’Connor came together, along with Hillsborough Superintendent Addison Davis, to drive home the point that having a united front during a time like this is one of the most important ways to make sure a tragedy like this doesn’t happen at home.