NEWTOWN, Conn., July 10 (UPI) -- Newtown, Conn., site of an elementary school mass shooting tragedy in December, will begin to decline tributes and sponsored events, a government leader said.
Writing on her blog, E. Patricia Llodra, the town's first selectman, said: "We have been the recipients of great generosity and kindness...the time is coming to for us to move into a quiet period of rest, recuperation and healing."
Four thousand Newtown residents were guests Sunday at a New York Yankees game, the latest in a series of free concerts, tickets to football and hockey games, visits from children's book authors and other tributes, The New York Times reported.
The newspaper added the moratorium on similar events is in the interest of prodding Newtown residents toward a future less defined by the carnage at Sandy Hook Elementary School, which left 26 people dead, including 20 children.
"We are a town with 300 years of history," Llodra said at the Yankees game. This is a piece of significant history to our town, and we need to incorporate that into who we are, but not have it be the only thing that defines us."
"Everyone appreciates what's been done," said Suzanne Schneider, a Newtown resident and Sandy Hook employee. "A lot of people want to do something and they're not sure what, but she [Llodra] is right in what she said."
