Highland Park community leaders and elected officials joined members of Christ Our Hope Parish at Immaculate Conception Church on July 1 for a healing Mass to commemorate the first anniversary of mass shooting at the community’s 2022 Fourth of July parade.

Seven people were killed and 48 were wounded in the shooting.

At the beginning of the Mass, seven parishioners who were at the parade when the shooting happened carried candles bearing the names of the dead to the front of the church. The sacrament of anointing of the sick was offered following the homily, and the parish blessed and distributed prayer shawls for those who are ill.

Following the Mass, participants dedicated a newly planted oak tree and plaque to the memory of the victims.

The Mass and dedication were centered around the spirit of healing, said Father Hernan Cuevas, who was installed as pastor of the parish just two days before the shooting.

“For us as Catholics and Christians, we believe in the power of healing and in the power of prayer,” Cuevas said. “It was very important for us as we come to the one-year remembrance of the Fourth of July tragedy to have a way of mourning and grieving and just to bring people together of different faiths and different backgrounds.”

When the shooting happened, at least two dozen parishioners were with the parish float preparing to enter the parade route. Afterward, they took shelter in the church, which is less than a 10-minute walk from the site of the shooting. They invited others to shelter there as well, and Cuevas led everyone in praying the rosary. 

Over the past year, many people have leaned on their faith to cope with the tragedy, he said.

“We’re becoming stronger together,” he said. 

The parish has held several events over the past year to promote healing. 

“In terms of history, the church is a place for support and shelter, and a place of healing and a place where people are welcomed, respected, loved and cared for,” Cuevas said. “This is what our church was for all of us last year. And now we have the new name, Christ Our Hope. We want to be this beacon of hope to our neighbors and also to the whole world.”

“This has absolutely been a heartbreaking year,” said Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering, who attended the Mass and spoke about the symbolism of the oak tree planted in the victims’ memory. “It has also been a year of incredible compassion, generosity and care by this community. This was an opportunity again for our community to show its resilience, to show its love and to show that these seven precious lives will be remembered forever.  … An oak tree is a strong tree that will live for a very long time. So this remembrance has been marked in a way that will ensure that those lives will be remembered forever.”

Bishop Jeffrey Grob is the vicar for Vicariate I and has accompanied the community over the last year.

“I think tragedy can do one of two things: It either divides people further or it can truly be the bond that brings people together,” said Bishop Grob, who presided at the Mass. “The community just came to life — you talk about having a purpose and a single mind to renew themselves, to renew the community, to not let the actions of one person divide and separate a community.”

He saw the parish unite with the wider community as well, he said. 

“We can choose to perpetuate darkness, but that’s not what we’re called to as people of faith. We’re called to be people of light,” Bishop Grob said. “That became tangible within this community. that what would have been and could have been something that was a pall over everything and continued to be that dissipated because of people’s willingness to come together and not be overcome with fear or simply close their minds and hearts and go behind closed doors. They strove to say, ‘How can we change this reality so that goodness and light come out of this dark act?’”