April 16, 2024 – West Bend, WI – Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, 1044 S. Silverbrook Dr, West Bend recently presented a check for $1,123.05 to the Waukesha Parade Memorial Fund to assist in the completion of The Parade Memorial, a space for reflection, healing, and remembrance.
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The Parade Memorial at Waukesha’s Grede Park is planned to include benches, sculptures, and a tile wall made up of tiles created by the community expressing a variety of well wishes. Additionally, the memorial (with total costs of approximately $1.5 million) will include plaques honoring each of the deceased victims.
The Parade Memorial will be dedicated on Thursday, November 21, 2024, the three-year anniversary of the tragic parade event.
Lori Lochen, a West Bend native and a friend of the West Bend congregation,in has been a guest speaker at worship services in recent months. Lori was appointed as a member of the Parade Memorial Commission and accepted the donation on behalf of the Memorial Fund.
On November 21, 2021, Lori was a participant in Waukesha’s Christmas Parade as part of her church group. An individual, now sentenced to life imprisonment, drove a sport utility vehicle through the parade, killing 6 people and injuring 69 others.
Lori was one of the critically injured parade participants and received life-saving care at several hospitals in the days and weeks following her injury. Subsequently, she has endured years of rehabilitative care.
Our Savior’s Pastor Jim Hearne states: “The fact that Lori has survived this tragic event and is able to testify to God’s healing power is nothing short of a miracle. Better yet, she represents healing in the greater Waukesha community. This memorial park will be a sign of that healing, something good coming from something that was very bad.”
