PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — They called him the pillar of their Northeast Portland community. So on Sunday, 10 days after 85-year-old Gene Gora was killed from homicidal violence, 50 of them gathered near where he used used to live and work to shed tears, sing and remember the man who was a father figure to their entire community.
“He was too kind of a man to have to leave this way,” said Kenneth Butler, who has known Gora since he was a child. “It’s sad.”
That happened on May 10 when a friend found Gora’s body inside his home. Police are investigating what led to Gora’s suspicious death.
But Sunday was reserved for memories. Flowers, notes and pictures gathered outside his old welding shop on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Someone even put up a welding mask inscribed with the words, “Weld on, Gene.”
Butler said he’s known Gora since he was 14. Butler still remembers how kind Gora was to him and his family.
“I’m at King school and we have a drill team and he sits out here for the last 15 years and he cheers his King School Drill team on,” Butler remembered.
Butler was hardly the only person to remember Gora for his warmth.
Sam Scalf, Gora’s grandson, said the support from so many people has been touching.
“It’s a lot to take in and listen to people’s kind words and the fact they cared enough to come out,” Scalf said. “It makes you feel good.
“We’re going to keep him up in spirit.”
And in doing so, they’re bringing people together — just how Gora did.
“It seems like people want to continue his life and good deeds,” said Tatyana Polyakova, “and people want to be united.”