Obituaries

Funerals Begin For Victims Of Aurora Mass Shooting

The shooting victims will be remembered by their fathers, mothers, wives, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, grandkids, and friends.

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AURORA, IL — After a weekend that family and friends of those killed in the deadly Aurora shooting Friday have described as nightmarish, funeral services and visitations are being scheduled for those lost. Family and friends of the victims, Clay Parks, Russell Beyer, Josh Pinkard, Vicente Juarez, and Trevor Wehner, will pay their respects to honor each life that was cut short when gunman Gary Martin opened fire after he found out he was being fired from Henry Pratt Manufacturing.

Trevor Wehner, 21, of Sheridan

Visitations for 21-year-old Trevor Wehner will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 20, from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Gabel-Dunn Funeral Home, 333 W. Church St., Sheridan. Funeral services for Wehner will follow immediately after, led by Pastor Eric Hayes of Aurora's Christian Community Church.

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Mourners will gather at the Sheridan Fire Department to remember Wehner with a celebration after the funeral concludes.

Vicente Juarez, 54, of Oswego

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Vicente Juarez, 54, is remembered as a "hardworking, responsible and loving husband, father and grandfather" who " had a passion for working on cars with his sons, and had a soft spot for a particular 1969 Chevy Impala."

Visitation for Juarez will be held on Feb. 21 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Dunn Family Funeral Home in Oswego. Funeral services are scheduled for Feb. 22 at 10 a.m. Followed by burial services at Spring Lake Cemetery in Aurora.

A GoFundMe has been established for the Juarez family.

Russell B. Beyer, 47, Yorkville

Russell Beyer, 47, of Oswego leaves behind two children, Megan and Brett. His obituary remembers him as "s a fun, loving gentle giant of a guy, who was friends with everyone. Russell would truly give you the shirt off of his back."

Beyer's visitation will take place on Feb. 21 from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Dieterle Memorial Home, 1120 S. Broadway, Montgomery. Funeral services are scheduled for Feb. 22 at 10 a.m. at Dieterle Memorial Home, followed by interment at Mt. Olivet Catholic Cemetery in Aurora.

A GoFundMe has been created to help Beyer's family in the wake of his death.

Clayton Parks, 32, of Elgin

Clayton Parks is being remembered as a "force to be reckoned with" in an obituary posted online. Parks, 32, survived by his wife, Abby, and 10-month old son, Axel, held his family as "his greatest joy," the obituary reads. Parks was a 2014 NIU graduate and a human resources manager at Henry Pratt Manufacturing.

Visitation will be held on Feb. 23 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Willow Funeral Home, 1415 W. Algonquin Rd., Algonquin. A chapel service is scheduled for 2 p.m. and interment is private.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the GoFundMe to benefit Clay's family or to the Axel Parks College Fund.

Funerals For Other Victims, #AuroraStrong Fund

At press time, information about services for Pinkard were not available, though his wife, Terra posted that they will be held in his hometown of Holly Pond Alabama. Patch will update this article with funeral and visitation times as it is made available.

Aurora City officials started a #AuroraStrong campaign on GoFundMe Saturday to assist the families with funeral expenses and ongoing expenses after their devastating loss. As of Monday afternoon, the campaign had well exceeded its $50,000 goal, raising $79,102 from more than 1,100 donors.

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Image of Trevor Wehner via City of Aurora; images of Vicente Juarez , Clayton Parks, and Russell Beyer via GoFundMe

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