A candlelight vigil was held in memorial of 21-year-old Brittany Grosse-Pryor on Friday night at the lakefront promenade
in Lake Charles. Grosse-Pryor was found dead Nov. 30, allegedly by the hands of a co-worker.
The parents of Grosse-Pryor said they were amazed at the outpouring of support from the community, and that the vigil was
a great way to remember who she was.
“I understand that Lake Charles is a
small, close-knit community, but we’ve really been taken aback by the
amount of support
we’ve been shown,” father of Brittany Grosse-Pryor, David Slade
said. “This has been really difficult to deal with, but without
the support from the community it would be that much harder.”
“Brittany never saw the bad in people, she always saw the good. She didn’t look at the color of a person’s skin or what had
happened in their past. She had a smile that could melt an iceberg, and everyone who met her loved her. As her parents we
believe those things, and that’s how we want her to be remembered,” mother of Brittany Grosse-Pryor, Dianna Slade said.
The vigil was hosted by the Louisiana
chapter of www.UniteWomen.org, and was attended by Lake Charles mayor, Randy
Roach. In his
address to the assembled crowd Roach proclaimed Dec. 7 as a day of
memorial for Grosse-Pryor and made a statement concerning
violence against women.
“These acts of violence against women need to stop, and as men we are responsible for stopping them. We need to do more, to
stand up and say that enough is enough,” Mayor Randy Roach said.
Organizer of the event and President of the Louisiana Chapter of UniteWomen.org, Renee Davis says that although she did not
know Grosse-Pryor personally, it is part of the organization’s mission to bring awareness to and enact legislation against
violent crimes against women.
“Whether we knew her or not, Brittany has touched our lives and will live in our hearts,” Davis said.