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Community gathers to honor Hadiya Pendleton in Bronzeville
CHICAGO (WGN) – Community members came together Saturday on the South Side to honor the memory of Hadiya Pendleton 12 years after she was murdered.
Hadiya's Promise held its 12th annual Party 4 Peace to help raise awareness for gun violence prevention.
This year's party brought out hundreds of people to Hadiya Pendleton Park in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood.
'We called this event today a party for peace, because there was no way we could have partied when Hadiya left us,' Hadiya's mother Cleo Cowley said.
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Hadiya was 15 years old when she was shot and killed in the same park where Saturday's event was held. The shooting happened just days after she performed at former President Barack Obama's second inauguration as a member of her high school marching band.
Cowley said several of her daughter's classmates from King College Prep were in attendance at Saturday's event.
'That is just a glimpse into the impact gun violence has. It's not just the person that dies, it's not just the immediate family, it's the people they touch, and that goes for everyone,' Cowley said.
Hadiya's family holds their Party 4 Peace every year on the first Saturday in June, because Hadiya's birthday was June 2.
It's also within the same week that 'Wear Orange Day' or 'National Gun Violence Awareness Day' are observed.
This year, Hadiya would have turned 28 years old.
'It's important to let her name live on. It's something that maybe she wouldn't have wanted to be involved in, but her namesake is promoting healthy outcomes for children,' family friend Nikki Wilson said.
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The event also promotes the park as a safe place for families to come after shootings once gave it a bad reputation.
Organizers hope their efforts can help further legislation aimed at preventing gun violence.
'We're not going to get weary. We're going to keep fighting. We're going to keep joy i the fighting until we don't have to fight anymore,' Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Illinois) said.
Hadiya's alleged shooter, Michael Ward, was convicted but had the conviction overturned by a judge in 2023. He now awaits a new trial, which comes as tough news for a family who said they want closure.
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