Sister Jeanette Buehler has retired as coordinator of the Community Homicide Prayer Vigil Group, an ecumenical initiative to pray for victims of violence and their families. Taking her place will be Jane Bohman, a member of the vigil group and St. Rita Church. Bohman also serves on the board of directors of Ohioans To Stop Executions.
In 1994, Precious Blood Sisters first began coordinating prayer vigils at sites where homicides had occurred in the Dayton area. Following a hiatus of several years, in 2006 an ecumenical group — again led by the Precious Blood Sisters — resumed the work of this ministry.
Beginning in October 2022, vigils are now held at noon on the second Saturday of each month at McIntosh Park, 888 Riverview Avenue in Dayton.
On Dec. 11, 2023, at Westminster Presbyterian Church, the group also participated in the 33rd Annual Homicide Victim Memorial Service, sponsored by the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office. Fifty-eight names were read aloud at the service, each a victim of violent crime in the Dayton area.