DVC Hosts Vigil for Oikos Victims on National Day of Prayer

On National Prayer Day, May 3, participants in a vigil at Diablo Valley College will be praying for the safety and protection of the nation's schools — and remembering a recent tragedy.

The event on Thursday evening will focus on the victims of the April 2 Oikos University shooting that left seven people dead at the private Christian college. Alleged gumman  at Alameda County Superior Court on Monday.

The largest homeless recovery center in Contra Costa County, Love-A-Child Missions, is organizing the prayer vigil to gather Bay Area residents under a united theme: to "pray for the safety and protection of all our Nation’s schools.”

Diablo Valley College was beings finalized as the location for the event on the very day the Oikos University shooting occurred, according to Love-A-Child Mission's Facebook page. Although the topic for the event had already been chosen — protecting the nation's schools — it naturally fit the circumstances.

The National Day of Prayer is held on the first Thursday of May, and was enacted in 1952 by 33rd President Harry S. Truman. Each year, the President signs a proclamation asking Americans to unite in prayer, meditation and observance.

President Obama's National Day of Prayer 2012 proclamation solicited prayer for members of America's armed forces, and for "those who are sick, mourning, or without hope." Obama also asked Americans to "ask God for the sustenance to meet the challenges we face as a Nation" and "give thanks for our democracy."

The Bay Area National Day of Prayer will be held at the Diablo Valley College stadium at 321 Golf Club Road on Thursday, May 3, 2012 from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.