Children killed in Milwaukee remembered, honored during concert
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) – Nearly a dozen children have been killed in Milwaukee in 2018.
On Friday night, a concert was held to remember and honor the 11 boys and girls.
“When we have killed children, it is a sign that we’ve gone too far and we’ve lost our hope,” Concert organizer Dayvin Hallmon said.
Hallmon believes the concert is for the whole community to grieve.
“This burden has been heavy, not just to the parents of those children but for everyone that lives here,” he said. “There’s no better way to grieve and to try to come to wholeness than to use music to do this.”
At the concert, the victims’ names were read aloud:
- Kole Jopek, 18-years-old
- Miyanna Jelks, 9-years-old
- Deavin Campbell, 18-years-old
- Kiara Brown, 18-years-old
- Gevonnie Frazier, 15-years-old
- Dejah Adkins, 16-years-old
- Frank Cardona, 18-years-old
- Josue Gold, 15-years-old
- Will Davis Jr., 17-years-old
- Tyler Evans, 18-years-old
- Sandra Parks, 13-years-old
One concert goer, Malesia Morrow, is the same age as Parks who was shot in November.
“She was in the house and someone just started shooting, shot through the window, shot her,” Morrow said. “She shouldn’t have to die.”
Hallmon said this concert "is only the beginning." He's hoping to mobilize African American string players (violin, viola, cello, double bass/upright bass) for a continuation of his efforts to address violence in Milwaukee's black community. The meeting is at 5 p.m. on January 6 at Ascension Lutheran Church, 1236 S. Layton Blvd.