DeKalb, Ill. – Northern Illinois University students and DeKalb community members joined together Friday to cope with the deaths of five students and the gunman, who opened fire during a lecture in Cole Hall.

More than 3,000 people packed the Duke Ellington Ballroom of the Holmes Student Center to listen to leaders from the local, state and national levels speak in memorial of the shooting victims, Daniel Parmenter, Catalina Garcia, Ryanne Mace, Julianna Gehant and Gayle Dubowski, who lost their lives during the Feb. 14 attack.

Guidance and words from NIU President John Peters and Executive Vice President Eddie Williams opened the vigil before giving way to Ill. Senator Brad Burzynski, R-Dist. 35, and state Representative Bob Pritchard, R-Dist. 70.

Before long, the stage then belonged to Rev. Jesse Jackson.

While the vigil provided an avenue for students and community members to come together, NIU student Jeremiah Moauro, said the DeKalb community didn’t need a full 24 hours to bond and rally behind one another.

“Any petty differences you may have had with someone have vanished at this point,” Moauro said. “It just matters that people are safe and you can reconnect with everyone and cherish what you have.”

As audience members exited the Holmes Student Center, a number of candle-lit memorials were placed around the perimeter of the building in remembrance of those who passed.

Lincoln Gibbs, health educator at NIU, passed out candles to passers by as signs and flowers were placed at each memorial.

“Our response teams are here to help students grieve and make sure their needs are met.”

Although emotion had instilled its roots into the core of the DeKalb community, there was a common realization among some NIU students and citizens on Friday – things may never be the same.

“While things may never return to normal, they can hopefully, from here, get better,” Moauro said.

Gibbs, through his experiences in the past 24 hours knows at some point NIU will get back up on its feet, but it’s the when that remains to be seen.

“I’m not sure what’s next, I just know NIU will forge on and overcome this,” Gibbs said.

For some, life in DeKalb has switched from their normal day-to-day operations to focusing on the here and now.

“Right now we literally go each hour-by-hour,” said NIU student Robert Graff. “We’re just doing whatever feels like the right thing.”

Immediately after the shooting, Graff said his instincts led him toward those he holds closest to his heart.

“My first action was to find everyone I care about immediately,” he said. “It’s not the kind of thing you think would happen to you at your school.”

Other students, who gathered with classmates and peers immediately after the shooting, were amazed by the reaction of the student body.

“It’s been incredible, how fast people got together,” said NIU student Brett Owens. “As soon as this happened, some of us were close [to where the shooting took place], walking to other classes, as soon as it happened everyone buckled down and strapped in and got together.”

NIU student William Sharif said the speed of the entire event left him awestruck, but also amazed that a population could regain its composure in such a steadfast manner.

“It’s just remarkable, being an NIU student, that we can cope so quickly,” he said. “It didn’t take us any time at all to know that we need to come together and know that we needed to form a community.”