CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Four days after a shooting devastated a family and left the community both shaken and enraged, hundreds of people gathered for a candlelight vigil in Clearlake.
People of all ages arrived at Redbud Park shortly before 9 p.m., gathering at the baseball field and forming a ring of flickering candles around the baseball diamond.
Behind home plate was a little shrine of candles, mementos, a teddy bear and pictures of a little read-headed boy, Skyler Rapp, whose portrait also adorned t-shirts worn by dozens of people at the park.
The 4-year-old was with his mother, her boyfriend and several friends at a gathering on Lakeshore Drive last Saturday night when armed assailants arrived and allegedly shot at the group.
In addition to Skyler, his mother, 22-year-old Desiree Kirby and her boyfriend, 25-year-old Ross Sparks, were wounded, as was Ross Sparks' 23-year-old brother, Andrew, 19-year-old Ian Griffith and 15-year-old Joey Armijo.
The little boy died a short time after the shooting. His parents and the rest of the shooting victims were flown to area hospitals. On Wednesday, Kirby remained in serious condition at UC Davis Medical Center, with Andrew Sparks and Ian Griffith reported by a hospital official to be in good condition.
Ross Sparks, released earlier in the week, was present at the event, as was Sunni Forney, Kirby's mother. Sparks was surrounded by friends and well-wishers, offering support and consolation.
Interim Clearlake Police Craig Clausen, several of his officers and a number of District Attorney's Office investigators were on hand to monitor the event, which was peaceful.
Clausen has confirmed that the June 18 incident claimed the most casualties of any shooting in the city's history.
The response from the community during the past several days community members has been one of outrage.
Some community members have gone so far as to post messages on their own Facebook pages, on the Lake County News Facebook page and in article comments sections calling, in some cases, for revenge.
But on Wednesday night, as darkness fell on the crowd and faces were framed in candlelight, those gathered heard a call for peace and healing.
Pastor Mitch Rodgers of Clearlake's Harvest Fellowship Church was asked to speak at the gathering. Like some others at the event, he hadn't known of the family before the tragedy, and the events of June 18 have filled his thoughts and prayers since then.
He thanked the community for its “overwhelming” support of the family, pointing out the size of the gathering said something about the heart of Clearlake's community, which was experiencing a ripple effect from the shooting.
“We can have a vengeful and retaliatory attitude,” said Rodgers, but that, in the end, only puts the person who takes that route in the same place as the men accused of shooting the family and their friends.
Rodgers suggested there was another option.
“We can change the atmosphere of this county,” he said, adding they had the ability to come together as a community.
“There are evil forces at work and we can put a stop to them,” Rodgers said.
He suggested community members could choose to be people of love, peace, harmony and joy, and could take back their city.
After Rodgers finished speaking, a rap song in Skyler's honor was performed and people began to gather in close to home plate, their candles held high.
People continued to stay and talk for more than an hour after the event ended.
Police still have not disclosed a possible motive in the case, but earlier this week they arrested 21-year-old Paul William Braden and 23-year-old Orlando Joseph Lopez, both of Clearlake Oaks, and are seeking 29-year-old Clearlake resident Kevin Ray Stone.
In a brief arraignment in Lake County Superior Court on Wednesday afternoon, both Braden and Stone were formally charged with murder, attempted murder, mayhem, assault with a deadly weapon and a number of special allegations, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff.
Charges have not so far been filed on Lopez, Hinchcliff said.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews, on Tumblr at www.lakeconews.tumblr.com, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews .