Waukesha Christmas parade: Dancing Grannies remember lives lost
WAUKESHA, Wis. - Downtown Waukesha lit up on Sunday for the city's 61st annual Christmas parade – a night of both celebration and remembrance.
It has been three years since the 2021 parade, at which Darrell Brooks drove an SUV into the crowd. The attack killed six people, and more than 60 others were physically injured.
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For many, the festivities began at Grede Park at the recently dedicated memorial for those victims. It was where the Milwaukee Dancing Grannies paid respects before their big dance.
"It just brought me to tears," said Kathy Gladfelter.
Grede Park memorial for 2021 Waukesha Christmas parade attack victims
The memorial's six ribbons form one symbolic heart to honor each of the six lives lost in 2021. Four members of the Dancing Grannies group were killed: Tamara Durand, Wilhelm Hospel, Leanna Owen and Virgnia Sorenson.
"The first thing I saw were the flowers," Gladfelter said. "It’s perfect, it’s absolutely perfect, with the six veins."
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Gladfelter and the rest of the Dancing Grannies stopped at the memorial hours before the parade stepped off.
"It feels good to be here," Jan Kwiatkowski, the group's executive director, said. "A lot of remembering the four and who they were."
Kwiatkowski said it's only fitting they spent a moment with those who meant so much to them, faces and names they'll always miss.
Dancing Grannies gather at Grede Park memorial for Waukesha Christmas parade attack victims
"We know they’re probably looking down on us now and carrying on the Grannies," said Gladfelter.
Together, they showed the community that a broken heart can mend.
"That’s what we are doing, we keep on dancing," Kwiatkowski said. "It’s important for people, I think, to hear the story, to witness the story, that you can heal from tragedy, from loss."
Waukesha Parade Memorial: Dedication ceremony at Grede Park
The Waukesha community gathered at Grede Park on Thursday, Nov. 21 to mark the three-year anniversary of the parade tragedy with the dedication of the new Parade Memorial at Grede Park.
Once the parade began, the heart of the community showed up with a lot of heart.
"The Dancing Grannies, hands down, best thing so far," attendee Natalie McGrath said. "To see this community still coming together and supporting each other after tragedy, it's just amazing."
The Dancing Grannies said they still get messages of support from all over the world. Parade attendees said, three years after the tragedy, the community seems to get stronger.