Twenty-six candlelit bags bearing the name of each victim was the centerpiece of Monday's vigil at Lawrenceburg's Newtown Park. Mike Perleberg-Eagle 99.3   Donna Courter (left) and Brenda Martin (center) announce the names and show a picture of each Newtown, Conn. shooting victim.  Mike Perleberg-Eagle 99.3

(Lawrenceburg, Ind.) - A candlelight prayer vigil was held for the Newtown, Connecticut victims at Lawrenceburg’s Newtown Park Monday night.

The gathering of more than 150 people began with a prayer. Then, organizers Donna Courter and Brenda Martin took turns reading the name of each victim.

Delaware United Methodist Church Pastor Tommy Beatley tried to help those listening make sense of the tragedy.

“God in his infinite wisdom gave us a great gift. It’s the gift of free will. We each have that. It’s a wonderful gift and most people use that gift for good,” Beatley said. “Sometimes someone chooses it for evil. But we should not give up heart. We should continue to love and cherish.”

Each person there stood silent as 26 balloons were released into the air. The balloons were colored white for each of the 20 children, and six green for each of the adults – the school colors of Sandy Hook Elementary.

Courter read a poem written by a Pennsylvania man following Friday’s tragedy.

“Twas' 11 days before Christmas, around 9:38 when 20 beautiful children stormed through heaven's gate…,” she read.

Others in the community asked that residents light a candle on their porch Monday evening to honor the victims.