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Annual morning ceremony offers community for those affected by 1 October shooting

Posted at 8:14 PM, Oct 01, 2023
and last updated 2023-10-01 23:18:41-04

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — About 45 minutes before Sunday's "1 October Sunrise Remembrance" ceremony in Las Vegas, Malcom Bissember was seated in the front row. Only a few other people were at the amphitheatre outside the Clark County Government Center.

"This is a tough day for us," said Bissember, who was at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival on Oct. 1, 2017.

His sister, Samanta Arjune, was also there, though she sustained gunshot injuries. She died from those injuries in 2020.

A total of 58 people lost their lives during the shooting and in the immediate aftermath. Others, including Arjune, died from their injuries in the months and years after.

6-YEAR MARK: Las Vegas remembers 1 October after six years

For many, including Steve Gomez, who lost his daughter, Angela Gomez, the pain from 1 October remains.

Since the tragedy, he says he and his wife have tried to be positive, doing random acts of kindness for strangers and starting a foundation in Angela's memory.

"It's the day I lost my baby girl," Gomez says. "We can be mad, but we're blessed because we know she's in heaven. We'll be with her one day."

During the ceremony, country music artist Pat Dalton, who was also there that fateful night, performed a song called "Forever Family," which he only performs on one day every year.

Jim Gibson, chair of the Clark County Commission, says the healing process is ongoing, not just for those who lost loved ones, but for an entire community.

"Over the course of time, we have to take with us the healing and, to the extent that we get healed, we have to help others," he said.