708 Gun Violence Victims Honored At Botanical Garden Of Healing

NEW HAVEN, CT — It was a rainy Saturday morning at the New Haven Botanical Garden of Healing when the garden's co-founder Marlene Pratt, a mother whose son was lost to gun violence, and other family members of the victims of gun violence gathered for the Annual Day of Remembrance Ceremony. The lush and beautifully manicured garden is dedicated to the Victims of Gun Violence.

At the ceremony, the 708 community members who have been lost to gun violence were remembered and honored. The names of all gun violence victims, dating back to 1966, were read.

The Magnitude Walkway, a brick pathway in the garden, is inscribed with the names and ages of every individual lost to gun violence, with the names of new victims added annually.

The site was conceptualized by a group of mothers whose children were victims of gun violence as a place to remember their loved ones. Maintained by the city, Urban Resources Initiative, and local volunteers, the garden serves as a place of reflection and healing.It also represents a "call to action to respond to the impact of gun violence in the New Haven community and beyond," Mayor Justin Elicker's office noted.

"Every year we gather together as a community at the New Haven Botanical Garden of Healing and we say their names, including the 12 we lost last year and the 5 we’ve lost to date this year," Elicker said. "Every year we gather to grieve, remember, and reflect on their lives. And every year we gather to recommit ourselves to honoring their lives through action and to reduce the scourge of gun violence from our city, state, and country."

In New Haven, there were 12 firearm-related homicides in 2024, including two New Haven high school students.

There have been five firearm-related deaths to date this year, including an 8-year-old boy.

Joining families at the Day of Remembrance last Saturday were local, state, and federal officials.

The community is invited to volunteer to help care for the Botanical Garden of Healing on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon. For those who wish to volunteer, sign up here. Registered volunteers should bring drinking water, a sun hat, and work gloves.

The New Haven Botanical Garden of Healing is located at 100 Valley St. in New Haven.