The president of Windsor's Pride Festival admits he had a hard time processing the news Sunday morning that someone had opened fire at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida.
The official death toll stands at 49 as of Monday morning. The name of the shooter, Omar Mateen has been removed from the list of victims.
David Lenz says he was at Carrousel by the River when he got the news.
"I had seen a few posts on Facebook, but I didn't really get a chance to read it. I thought it had something to do with the shooting that happened with the Voice contestant," he says referring to the fatal shooting of singer Christine Grimmie in Orlando the night before. "Someone said 'you really gotta look at the news' -- I was just absolutely shocked."
After that, the gay community came together fast to organize a vigil to commemorate those who died and were hurt. It'll be held at 7pm Wednesday outside the Squirrel Cage on Maiden Ln. downtown. Lenz says Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens has confirmed he will speak.
Although the shooter targeted the gay community, Lenz says everyone is welcome to the vigil.
"It's why we keep doing what we're doing," says Lenz having had 24 hours to process the massacre. "Canada we're a little more fortunate with the gun laws, but there still is hatred out there."
Vigils were held in a number of North American cities including Toronto. In London, the vigil is at 7:30pm tonight at Aeolian Hall.
