SARVAR, Pa. (AP) — Hundreds of people gathered Wednesday to remember the former fire chief who was shot and killed over the weekend at a rally for former President Donald Trump in a rural Pennsylvania area rocked by the violence of a 20-year-old local man.
Outside the Lernersville Speedway in Sarvar, Pennsylvania, where the vigil for Corey Comperatore was held, a sign read, “Rest in Peace Corey, Thank you for your service,” along with the logo of his fire department.
On the country road to the race track – lined with cornfields, churches and industrial plants – a sign in front of a local credit union reads: “Our thoughts and prayers are with the Comperatore family.”
Comperatore, 50, had worked as a project and tool engineer, was an army reservist and, after his time as chief, worked for many years as a volunteer firefighter, according to his obituary.
He died on Saturday in an assassination attempt at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Comperatore spent the last moments of his life protecting his wife and daughter from gunfire, officials said.
Vigil organizer Kelly McCollough told the crowd Wednesday that the vigil was not a political event, adding that there was no room for hate or personal opinions, but rather just to show support for the Comperatore family.
“Tonight is about unity,” McCollough said. “We need each other. We need to feel love. We need to feel safe. We need clarity in this chaos. We need strength. We need healing.”
Dan Ritter, who delivered the eulogy, said he bought Comperatore’s childhood home in 1993. This was the beginning of a friendship that grew on shared values in family, Christian faith and politics.
“Corey loved his family and always spent time with them,” Ritter said. “Last Saturday was supposed to be one of those days for him. He did what a good father would do. He protected those he loved. He is a true hero to all of us.”
Jeff Lowers of the Freeport Fire Department trained with Comperatore and said at the vigil that Comperatore always had a smile on his face.
Afterwards, Heidi Powell, a family friend, read a speech by Comperatore’s high school economics teacher, who was unable to attend Wednesday’s vigil.
“What made Corey truly extraordinary was his indomitable spirit, his unwavering courage and his unwavering optimism,” wrote teacher Mark Wyant.
Comperatore’s pastor, Jonathan Fehl, of Cabot Methodist Church in Cabot, Pennsylvania, said the family of the slain man was “humbled by the way the community has rallied around them” and by the support they have received from people around the world.
According to Collin Burke, Comperatore posted on social media before the rally that he had been given better seats at the event. The 27-year-old lived next door to Comperatore and had previously volunteered with him at the fire station.
When Burke heard about the shooting, he messaged Comperatore and asked if he was OK.
Comperatore never responded.
“It destroyed me,” Burke said Wednesday of Comperatore’s death.
Burke said he planned to attend a private funeral nearby on Friday, and the public was also invited to express condolences at a wake beginning Thursday afternoon at Laube Hall in Freeport, Pennsylvania.
As a child, Burke rode on the same school bus as Comperatore’s daughters. He recalled that Comperatore had the nicest lawn on the block, owned two pretty Dobermans and enjoyed bass fishing in his spare time.
He described Comperatore as a Trump supporter “through and through” and also as a “very neighborly person.”
The vigil ended with people in the crowd lighting candles and holding cell phones, glow sticks and lighters in Comperatore’s honor while his favorite song – “I Can Only Imagine” by Christian rock band MercyMe – played and pictures of him and his family were shown on a screen.
Two other people were injured at the rally: David Dutch, 57, of New Kensington, Pennsylvania, and James Copenhaver, 74, of Moon Township, Pennsylvania. Both were listed in solemn but stable condition Wednesday evening, a spokesman for Allegheny Health Network said.
Trump suffered an ear injury but was not seriously injured and attended the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this week.
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AP reporters Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas, and Lisa Baumann in Bellingham, Washington, contributed.
