‘We need to come together.’ Throngs at SC park mourn the 6 mass shooting victims

Rock Hill has begun to heal.

On a warm April evening, hundreds of people descended on Fountain Park Sunday, seeking solace and catharsis. They met up in the aftermath of last Wednesday’s mass shooting, where six people were killed by a Rock Hill man and former NFL player who authorities said later died by suicide.

The victims included a prominent area doctor, Robert Lesslie, his wife, two of their grandkids and two air conditioning techs working at the the family’s Marshall Road home. The story made national headlines and shook the city of Rock Hill, a town of 75,000 about 30 miles south of Charlotte.

Although Rock Hill preschool teacher Anna Wyman didn’t know the victims, she wanted to show support, and was watching her 1-year-old niece at the vigil.

“When I heard about the grandchildren, that really affected me. I love kids and I’m glad she can be out here,” Wyman told The Herald, pointing to her niece. “We need to come together as a community in times like these.”

People mourned the loss of Dr. Lesslie, 70; his wife, Barbara, 69; and their grandchildren, Adah, 9, and Noah, 5; and air-conditioning technicians with GSM Services of Gastonia, N.C., James Lewis, 38, and Robert Shook, 38. Shook was wounded in the attack and succumbed to his injuries Saturday night, authorities said.

Authorities said that the suspect, Phillip Adams, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound inside his family’s home — less than a mile from the Lesslie house — as police surrounded the house late Wednesday.

Celebrating ‘lives well lived’

Wyman wore yellow, blending in with the colorfully dressed crowd that had gathered on Sunday. Her niece was laughing as older children blew bubbles and playfully wrestled.

Nearby, Rebecca Austin said the event felt joyful, which was how “the Lesslie family would’ve wanted it.” She and Kim Allen, who had each known the Lesslie family for years, were working as volunteers at the event.

Allen stood behind a table, handing out pink, blue and orange bottles of bubbles as people came to the hour-long vigil.

“It’s exciting to see everybody come together in the midst of heartbreak,” Allen said. “It’s good to come out and celebrate lives well lived.”

She had known the Lesslie family for more than 30 years. Allen cleaned the family’s home while she was in college, and later, Allen was a secretary at Sullivan Middle School when the Lesslie children were there.

“You don’t want anybody to get hurt, but when it’s such a great family that just did so much for the community, everybody was in shock,” Allen said.

At the vigil

The Rev. Bob Elliott of Edgemoor ARP Church was the event’s first speaker. He stood at the microphone in front of a sea of bright colors.

Elliott introduced the Lesslie family. And he spoke of how he grew close to Barbara and Robert working at Camp Joy, a Christian camp serving those with special needs, and later got to know the rest of the family.

He also painted a picture of the Lesslie grandchildren who died — Adah, the loving, mother-like big sister to Noah, who, at 5, was a bundle of energy and a novice but loyal fishing partner. Elliott said he wanted Jeff and Katie, their parents who were present on Sunday, to know that “they will be missed but never forgotten.”

‘Like family’

Many in the crowd seemed to have a story to tell.

Willie Ware, a recently retired Fort Mill High School tennis coach and longtime Rock Hill native, considered Robert Lesslie like “family” — Lesslie was on the board of the Manna Pantry House, the place where Ware has volunteered for years.

“You notice our group all has on our (Manna Pantry House) T-shirts today, too. We just wanted to show our support for the family,” he said.

Grief and joy intermingle

In the middle of the park, Sarah Valentine, who’s known the Lesslie family for years, rocked her 2-year-old daughter in a stroller as she fiddled with a purple bottle of bubbles.

Valentine met the Lesslies through Camp Joy, where Barbara Lesslie worked for years.

“Obviously, we’re devastated for them,” Valentine said. “But as Christians, we can have both grief and joy at the same time because we know where they are now.”

She called the vigil a perfect way to honor the family: “Just to see how many people are here and to recognize all the connections they have so many people. It’s special.”

Motive still unknown

Authorities do not yet know the motive for the shooting, York County Sheriff Kevin Tolson said last week. Detectives have not confirmed reports that Adams had been a patient of Dr. Robert Lesslie’s, Tolson said.

Lesslie was a physician in York County for decades.

At the time of his death, Lesslie was medical director of Riverview House Calls & Riverview Hospice & Palliative Care and had written several books on emergency room work and workers. The Lesslies had been married more for than 40 years.

CTE test planned

Adams was once a Rock Hill High football star, who went on to play the sport at South Carolina State University and then had a six-year journeyman’s career in the NFL.

Adams’ brain will be tested for CTE, or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, as part of an autopsy procedure, York County Coroner Sabrina Gast said. CTE is “a degenerative brain disease found in athletes, military veterans, and others with a history of repetitive brain” injury, according to the Boston University CTE Center.

Adams, 32, started his NFL career in 2010 and played for several teams, including the San Francisco 49ers and New York Jets. Adams suffered several concussions, two of which occurred over a three-game stretch.

Adams’ family, in a statement to The Herald, raised concerns about the influence of Adams’ football stint: “We don’t know if football played a role in this drastic chance, but we do know there has to be some catalyst,” the statement said. Results from the CTE tests are not expected for months.

Remembering all the victims

Back at the vigil, the Rev. Barry Dagenhart of First ARP Church addressed the crowd and allotted time for people to join a five-minute silent prayer.

He directed the crowd to devote it to all the families who lost loved ones in the shooting last week, including the Shook, Lewis and Adams families.

The vigil ended with a prayer and song as bubbles floated into the blue, cloudless sky.