Vigil recalls the sacrifices made in Iraq

The names of more than 4,000 servicemen and servicewomen who have died in Iraq were read Saturday during the Prayer Vigil for the Fallen at The Good Shepherd Moravian Church.

The names echoed off the wooden arched ceilings as the Rev. Paula Hart read the first part of the list.

Several of the names read during the five-hour vigil were those of Mohawk Valley residents who have died in Iraq since the war began in March 2003.

"Who knows what they would have gone off to accomplish?" Hart said. "There are some as young as 18 and some in the prime of their lives."

Hart said one of the purposes of the vigil is to remind everyone of the horrors of war.

"We should always be working for peace, justice and love," she said. "We hope some day war will be no more."

One of those in attendance was Chase Hunter of Utica, who said the prayer vigil could have a positive effect on the community.

"Not just making the community stronger, but to make the world stronger," he said.

Observer-Dispatch