GREENSBORO, N.C. — People in Greensboro held vigils for victims of gun violence Wednesday.
They were mothers who lost children and others who fear they could lose theirs. All were looking for ways to end the madness.
Hands and voices were lifted to the sky in prayer in City Center Park. A group gathered to pray for the safety of their children.
"(We were praying) to take back our streets and take back our children," Christian Anderson said.
Anderson organized the vigil after recent mass shootings, including the one inside a Texas elementary school.
"I can't even begin to imagine sending my daughter to school and never being able to pick her up," Anderson said.
A couple of blocks away, outside the Melvin Municipal Building, people collected signs set up on the lawn. Each one has pictures of Greensboro gun violence victims.
Each sign was cleaned, some by the mothers of the person on the sign.
"I lost my son to gun violence in 2016. He was breaking up a fight and he was caught in the crossfire," Dr. Irish Spencer said.
Spencer is a member of Mothers Standing Against Gun Violence, which support families like hers who lost a loved one to gun crimes. The group cleaned the signs as part of its weekly meeting.
"It helps us with closure and it helps us talk about things that need to be going on in the community," Spencer said.
Their group also holds community walks to look for tips on unsolved homicides. Spencer said solving cases and preventing future gun deaths will require everyone's help.
"We really would like more people to get out into the community. Come out of your hood and visit another," Spencer said.
Anderson agrees and hopes prayer can be a start for those looking to take action against violence.
"I just want people to know they can speak a thing and it can come," Anderson said.
Anderson plans to make the prayer vigil a monthly event. Mother's Standing Against Gun Violence meets weekly.