At the end of April, Davis experienced some of the most horrific crimes in its history.
Two members of our community were murdered and another was critically wounded. The two men who died, David Henry Breaux and Karim Abou Najm, were people who touched not only their friends and family but their whole community. David, the Compassion Guy, saw his mission in life as spreading the call for compassion and peace in Davis and across the country. Like David, Karim wanted to make the world a better place. When he died, Karim was working on developing a program that would help the hearing impaired navigate noisy environments. Kimberlee Guillory, the woman who was critically stabbed, had spent the last year caring for her dying daughter. She is now facing a long and difficult recovery.These crimes traumatized the entire community, and it will take time for the community to heal.
Over the week the events occurred, the people of Davis sprung into action.
The community immediately set up emergency shelter to protect the unhoused until the person responsible was arrested. Other community members began collecting funds to support the victims and their families. (See below for details of how you too can provide support.)
Several groups including the Celebration of Abraham have held services honoring the victims and offering solace to the community. The Phoenix Coalition held a community memorial at the Compassion Corner Earthbench, a public art project Breaux spearheaded a decade ago on the street corner where, for years, he raised awareness of compassion and sought out others’ definition of the term. Hundreds of friends, family, and UC Davis community members remembered the life of UC Davis student Karim Abou Najm on Friday May 5 at a public memorial held on campus at the International Center. The community prayed as Kimberlee Guillory began her slow, painful recovery. On Monday, May 8th, The Episcopal Church of St. Martin held a Davis Community Multi-Faith Prayer Vigil. The Rev. Dr. Pamela Dolan, Rector of Saint Martin, acknowledged that community healing will require ongoing community events and promised to work with others to provide more opportunities for restoration.
On May 7th, the Celebration of Abraham hosted a zoom Interfaith Service of Compassion and Comfort.
The service began with Becky Marigo and Harmony Scopazzi from Davis Community Meals thanking the community for making possible the emergency housing and feeding of the unhoused in Davis. The service then turned to religious leaders. Rabbi Jeremy Simons from Bet Harverim, Reverend Brandon Auston from Davis United Methodist Church, and Erum Abbasi Syed from Muslim DEIN who each provided prospective and prayers of comfort from their traditions. The program closed with Claudette Cervinka from the Davis Quaker Friends Meeting leading a moment of silence. If you missed the service or would like to revisit it you can view it at Celebration of Abraham Interfaith prayers for compassion and comfort – YouTube.
Honoring Those Attacked
Any funds above cost the for the arrangements be will be donated to Davis Phoenix Coalition which exists to engage and unite the Davis community. https://davisphoenixco.org/
https://give.ucdavis.edu/Donate/YourGift/125342
