Community will help decide memorial for Oregon District tragedy

Credit: Jim Noelker

Credit: Jim Noelker

A 16-person committee has been formed to help develop a memorial to honor victims of the 2019 Oregon District mass shooting.

The committee includes survivors and surviving loved ones of victims, victim advocates, Oregon District residents and business representatives, planning and engineering staff and business and elected leaders.

Credit: JIM NOEKLER

Credit: JIM NOEKLER

The community will help determine what type of memorial they want, and the first forum where they can provide feedback will be held at 6 p.m. Oct. 21 at the Dayton Metro Library.

“This memorial will be an important step in the healing process for our Oregon District community and our entire city as we remember those who were lost and grieve with those who were affected by this tragedy in the heart of our community,” said Natalie Skilliter, president of the Oregon District Business Association and a member of the new committee.

This week, Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley and the Oregon District Business Association announced the formation of the new committee. The move comes more than two years after mass shooting that left nine people dead and many others wounded and traumatized on the morning of Aug. 4, 2019.

Credit: Jim Noelker

Credit: Jim Noelker

Sandy Gudorf, president of the Downtown Dayton Partnership and co-chair of the new 8/4 Memorial Committee, said it is imperative to take the time to get this right and create a memorial that the community wants and deserves.

One of the first steps will be to collect community feedback, which will begin during a Community Resiliency Forum at the library on Thursday.

Community members who wish to participate can RSVP at 8.4.19.memorial@gmail.com or call or text 937-985-1628 by Wednesday, Oct. 20.

Credit: Jim Noelker

Credit: Jim Noelker

The Downtown Dayton Partnership and the Oregon District Business Association plan to post a link to a survey that asks for feedback about a memorial. Their websites are: www.downtowndayton.org and www.theoregondistrict.org.

“The 8/4 Memorial Committee will be working with survivors, victims’ families and those directly affected in our community, but also is seeking input from our community, because we recognize the impact it had on us all,” said Sandy Hunt, co-chair of the new committee and director of the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office’s victim/witness division.

The committee members are:

Sandy Gudorf, Co-Chair, President, Downtown Dayton Partnership

Sandy Hunt, Co-Chair, Director, Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office, Victim/Witness Division

Chris Shaw, Dayton City Commissioner

Holly Hornbeak, City of Dayton

Natalie Skilliter, President, Oregon District Business Association

Linda Ashworth, Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce

Brian Zamostny, City of Dayton, Division of Civil Engineering

Rob Jones, Ferncliff Funeral Home and Oregon District Resident

Dion Green, Founder and CEO Fudge Foundation

LaSandra James, Mother of Lois Oglesby

Kevin J. Gray, Westchester Education Services and ODBA Trustee

Bethany Ramsey, Puff Apothecary

Michelle Lovely, The Dayton Foundation

Samantha Elder, Montgomery County ADAMHS

Austin Smith, GM, Ned Peppers and the Hole in the Wall

Dana Graham, ODBA Trustee

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