KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The pain around the loss of Jackson County Civil Process Server Drexel Mack and Independence Police Officer Cody Allen is still fresh, but organizers say healing starts when people come together.
Dewayne Day organized Friday night's vigil in Independence.
"My father is a retired police officer, Undersheriff," Day said. "And I'm a process server for six years. So basically, I lost two brothers. I lost two family members."
Samantha Harwood lost a family member in Thursday afternoon's murders.
Harwood is Officer Allen's cousin.
"Just feels surreal. Doesn't feel like we should be here doing this for Cody. I think we're all still processing. You know, it's very fresh," Harwood said. "He just never hesitated to do the right thing and help other people. He put other people above himself."
Allen did it again Thursday when he was shot trying save Mack.
"It's just all hard," she said. "He was doing what he loved and he was doing what he felt was right. And I mean he was trying to help other people."
There were a lot of hurting people at the vigil, but that's why Day brought everyone together.
"I think when people get together they feel the love and compassion and it can kind of start the healing process," he said. "The wound will never fully close, but it can start the healing process."
It's helped Harwood as well.
"It hits deep," she said. "It's good to hear the support of the community. It's good to feel like he reached people outside of just our family. It's been amazing to read all the stories online that people have been posting. Just people that didn't even know him reaching out to support."
