Families, city leaders plan memorial as Aurora marks seventh anniversary of Henry Pratt shooting

Dozens of community members gathered at Aurora City Hall on Sunday to mark the seventh anniversary of the mass shooting at the Henry Pratt Company that killed five employees and injured several others.

The ceremony included a moment of silence and family tributes. Organizers and attendees recalled that an employee who was being terminated opened fire at the suburban manufacturing plant, killing Trevor Wehner, Clayton Parks, Russell Beyer, Vicente Juarez and Josh Pinkard. Several others, including police officers, were reported injured; the ceremony did not specify the exact number of injured people.

"Please join us in a moment of silence to honor those we lost, their families, and all those impacted," an unnamed ceremony participant said during the observance. Family members offered personal remembrances. A family speaker reflected, "Watching his personality grow and flourish and seeing little glimpses of his dad, in the way he smiles, in the way that he laughs." Another family member said of one of the victims, "He was the most amazing, not husband, human being, father. He was amazing. And I guess that's what hurts me the most because he's missing out on a lot of things." These quotations are from attendees identified only in the ceremony transcript as family participants; not all speakers were given full names in the public remarks.

City leaders and victims' families said they are coordinating on plans for a permanent memorial ahead of the shooting's 10th anniversary so that the families' visions are reflected in the design and placement. The report did not specify a timeline, funding source or location beyond "plans are underway."

Reporting in Aurora, Emmy Victor, WGN News.