PITTSBURGH — A local graduate of Brown University held a vigil on Saturday, honoring victims of last week’s mass shooting.
Two students were killed, and another nine were injured after a gunman opened fire at the Rhode Island university on Dec. 13.
Zuhal Saljooki graduated from Brown University in 2023 and knows people who knew the students who died.
Saljooki recalled feeling “an immense amount of grief” after the shooting, and a desire to reach out to others who were struggling.
“I personally wanted to be on campus, but the situation was so dire that I couldn’t go safely to my alma mater. So, I wanted to create a community for grieving alumni and generally people who felt connected to the event and gun violence in general.”
Hosted at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Mount Washington Branch, Saturday’s vigil included light refreshments and the reading of a poem and a prayer.
The tragedy on campus deeply impacted students, Saljooki said.
“They are disturbed. They are terrified. Truly, the word terrorism is used for a reason. They’ve instilled terror in these young adults.”
However, students were relieved to learn that the suspected shooter had been found, Saljooki said.
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Claudio Neves Valente, 48, was found dead in New Hampshire late Thursday. Authorities say he was also linked to the shooting death of an MIT professor days after the shooting at Brown University.
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