Families and friends mourn for teens lost to violence at candlelight vigil

People from all walks of life commemorated those who died young as a result of violence at a candlelight vigil in downtown Windsor Wednesday.

Carolyn Crankshaw, who lost her son Darrion Moffatt at a Walkerville shooting in September, said he "was a shining star" in her world.

"The reality of my loss has hit our family like a brick, and left us with a huge void that we'll never be able to fill again," she said.

Moffatt was 18 when he died and Windsor police have arrested two young men in connection to his death.

"I remember myself as a teen," said Crankshaw. "You didn't have to worry about people carrying around knives and guns, especially other youth."

At one point, names of those who have died in the region as a result of violence were read out for people to remember: Dallas Nelson, Jerson Calero, Jason Solomon, Chance Gauthier, Marcus Pierce, Jarvas Scott Poberezny, Darrion Moffatt, Bryce Hall, Autumn Taggart.

Debbie Hanley, who was at the vigil, had similar sentiments.

Her grandson's best friend, Marcus Pierce, died in 2017 after a stabbing in a wooded area in Belle River. He was 18 when he died. The family will be headed to court in January.

"Our young kids are dying, they're being murdered," she said. "And it's just a different world now, it's a very different world."

She said she's worried for her grandson, 21, and two granddaughters, 13 and 8.

Not only does Hanley want to see more police presence, she wants there to be more help available for youth.

Pierce's aunt, Luanne Solomon, said they want to make sure other youth won't have to deal with something similar.

"I think we need to implement something into the schools, to make sure that the youths understand that there's a better way to deal with things than violence."