VANCOUVER -- One week after a man with a knife went on an unprovoked stabbing spree in and around the Lynn Valley Library, the community is coming together to honour the victims of the attack.

Organized by the Lynn Valley Lions Club, a drive thru vigil was held at Lynn Canyon Park on Saturday evening between 7:30 and 9:30.

“When there’s such a senseless act like we experienced, it’s really important for the community to be able to come out and show their solidarity,” said the club’s president Eric Miura.

The club has experience putting on large community events — even a few already during the pandemic — but pulling off something like this in a compressed time frame has been a monumental task involving the local branch of The Royal Canadian Legion, the District of North Vancouver and a number of local businesses.

Even children from the five elementary schools and one high school in Lynn Valley have been involved, contributing artwork done on waterproof paper.

“I can’t say enough about the local schools. We were expecting 200 or 300 pieces of art,” said Miura. “So, we dropped off the paper, they needed more. We ended up, in 24 hours, with over 2,000 pieces of art from all the local schools.”

The vigil took place along a two-kilometre route on a service road in the park, with attendees asked to enter at the end of Ross Road.

In times of crisis, vigils frequently feature candles, but the Lynn Valley Lions are asking people to bring flashlights or battery-powered candles because all visitors will be required to remain in their vehicles while taking part.

The club has consulted with District of North Vancouver firefighters to create a safety plan allowing some candles to be part of displays along the vigil route.

The Lynn Valley Lions are also collecting donations for the victims online and through Blueshore Financial, where people can make deposits to the Lynn Valley Lions Emergency Fund.

One woman died in the knife attack, and six other people were injured.

Miura and dozens of other volunteers spent Saturday afternoon setting up the vigil displays.

“We look forward to seeing how everyone comes together this evening and (to) really showcase the strength of Lynn Valley,” said Miura.