Hundreds of people gathered Wednesday night for a candlelight vigil outside of the Star Dance Studio to remember the victims of Saturday night’s shooting.
Eleven people were killed in that incident — mostly men and women in their 60s and 70s who were there to enjoy a night out at the ballroom.
One victim was Ming Wei Ma, co-owner of Star Dance and a beloved dance instructor there.
A mass shooting at a dance studio in Monterey Park late in the evening on Saturday, Jan. 21, left 10 people dead at the scene and 10 others wounded. An 11th victim died Monday.
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As we report on that shooting, we are also resurfacing resources and previous reporting that can help people understand the context and get help, if needed.
“What was amazing about teacher Ma is that when you called him he was there,” said Monterey Park community member Cindy Wu. “He was always willing to be available and really just spread the culture and be there to bridge the gap between various cultures.”
The ballroom was a popular destination on the weekends for people across the city and the wider San Gabriel Valley.
“This street and plazas just like this are a lifeline to many of us here,” said Carrie Zhang, the founder of The Asian Mental Health Project, who spoke at last night's vigil. “Places like Garvey Avenue, they connect generations of people when words within families are mistranslated and miscommunicated.”
Zhang addressed the mental health impact of this shooting tragedy, especially on immigrant communities that have found a sense of home in Monterey Park.
“We show our love for each other by sharing food at our favorite restaurants. We celebrate sacred holidays together and through dancing together in places just like this. But this lifeline has been cut.”
She stressed that it's important not to mourn in isolation and to reach out to others: “We have to hold space for our own feelings and for each other's feelings.”
After the shooting, a special emphasis has been placed on the mental health of elders in Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities who may be reluctant to ask for help, or unsure of how to do so.
Zhang emphasized on Wednesday night that there are resources available at the Asian Mental Health Project and elsewhere. Anyone in an immediate crisis can dial 988 or access local mental health resources through county websites.
Not far from Monterey Park, at East Los Angeles College, another vigil was held in memory of the victims.
Students, faculty, and staff gathered in the quad just three miles from Star Dance.
Samantha Rodriguez is a 23-year-old student at ELAC who reflected on what it's like to grow up in a time where mass shootings are commonplace.
“It makes you have a wake-up call," she said. "It makes you be more aware of your surroundings, more aware of your world, more aware of your environment on a daily basis, and makes you stay more alert on what needs to be changed."
Steven Gallegos is student body president at ELAC and said the vigil was needed because it kindles hope and love.
"It brings the light even amongst the darkness,” he said, “and it brings a voice in the darkness that says no, we're not going to stand for that, we're going to continue, we're going to persevere, not alone but together."
The investigation into the shooting in Monterey Park continues. Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said in an update Wednesday that deputies still have not made the connection between the victims and the shooter.
Read our live coverage: Mass Shooting In Monterey Park Leaves 10 Dead, 10 Wounded. What We Know So Far
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