Make sure to hold the vigil at a time when the candles will have their most powerful visual impact (dusk or after), but not so late that mourners of all ages cannot attend. Parks, community centers, churches, legion halls, and auditoriums are all appropriate locations as well. The location should be easy to find for folks from all over the area, and you should have an indoor backup location reserved in case of inclement weather. However, if part of the goal of the memorial is to draw attention to the issue that caused the death, holding the vigil on the capitol steps, in front of a courthouse or other appropriate government building would be in order. If you’re holding the vigil simply to mourn the untimely loss of a member of the community, the site of the death may be an appropriate location. This depends on the type of death and the true purpose of the vigil.

Where is the best place to hold a candlelight vigil in memorial for a loved one? The following set of Frequently Asked Questions is designed to help you – and your community – process your feelings of grief, and move through the phases of mourning until you achieve the sense of relief, peace and serenity so important to our closure. We may be dealing with our own devastation and grieving process if the cause of death was violence-related there may be additional trauma to process, or even additional violence to defuse. While we have all seen examples of beautiful, moving candlelight memorials, when it comes time for us to actually plan and execute one, things can become more uncertain.

Candlelight service