This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The family of a 6-year-old Utah native who was killed during a shooting at a Connecticut elementary school last week have announced plans for a public memorial service to be held in Ogden on Thursday evening.
The public service honoring Emilie Parker will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday at Ben Lomond High, 1080 E. 9th Street.
Emilie, who was born in Ogden and lived there until her parents moved for work reasons, was one of 20 children killed last Friday by a gunman at Sandy Hook Elementary. Six faculty members also were killed, and the gunman's mother was shot to death at their home.
A statement released by the Parker family through Facebook suggests that the Thursday service is being held in order to keep Emilie's Saturday funeral private.
"[The family members] understand that many people in the community would like to participate in some way to honor Emilie as this event has caused the nation to mourn also," the statement reads.
Emilie's father, Robbie Parker, will speak at the community service Thursday, and the other victims of the Sandy Hook shooting also will be honored, according to the statement.
Members of the public also are invited to line the funeral procession route on Saturday, beginning at 11:30 a.m. and are encouraged to wear pink and hold daisies in Emilie's honor.
The procession begins at 7th Street and Monroe Boulevard and proceeds north on Monroe to Myers Evergreen Memorial Park cemetery.
Twitter: @KimballBennion