Notre Dame Parish lit luminaries placed at the front entrance of the North Caldwell church Friday and Saturday nights—one for each victim of the Dec. 14 mass shooting in Newtown, Conn.

Each bag expressed the hand-written message, "A Light Shines for Sandy Hook Elementary School."

The community is in mourning along with the nation after 20 children and six adults were massacred at the Connecticut school by a single gunman who also took his own life. 

The church opened all day Saturday for anyone who wanted to come in and say a prayer. 

A West Essex couple spoke to Patch Friday about their grandson, a fourth grader at Sandy Hook, who survived the shooting.

Local houses of worship are discussing a united prayer service later this week. Look for details on Caldwells Patch. Let us know about local efforts to remember the victims and help their families by emailing caldwells@patch.com.