Orlando gives new Pulse committee 6 months to come up with memorial design

ORLANDO, Fla. - The City of Orlando has shared a few new updates Wednesday regarding the creation of a memorial to honor the 49 killed in the Pulse nightclub shooting in 2016. 

These new updates come months after the city agreed to purchase the nightclub property back in October when the onePULSE Foundation's memorial plans fell through. 

A new advisory committee consisting of survivors, victims' family members, architects and other community leaders has been established to create a conceptual design for the memorial. The city aims to have the design recommendation by the end of 2024. 

Photos and keepsakes adorn the Pulse Interim Memorial located at the Pulse nightclub site south of downtown Orlando, June 6, 2019. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

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Over 150 people applied to join the Pulse Memorial Advisory Committee, but 18 people were chosen by a team of community leaders. The full list of committee members and the community leaders who recommended them to Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer will be included below. 

The committee will meet monthly, and members of the public can attend these meetings either in person or virtually. Information on these meetings is available here. The first one is scheduled for July 24 at the Kia Center. 

The greater Orlando community also has the opportunity to offer their input on the Pulse memorial design over the next several months. The first Open House event is scheduled for July 25 at the Kia Center. More details on that here. 

The City of Orlando has also created a dedicated website to Pulse remembrance, which will feature historical records, information and other updates about the upcoming memorial. 

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Pulse Memorial Advisory Committee members

Eighteen members were selected to the Pulse Memorial Advisory Committee by the following community leaders, according to the City of Orlando:

• JahKiya Bell, Ed.D, Senior Advisor to the President and CEO, Heart of Florida United Way
• Rev. Dr. Jose Rodriguez of the Episcopal Churches of Christ the King and Jésus de Nazaret
• Joél Junior Morales, Foundation Manager, Contigo Fund
• Jesse Arias, Director of the Orlando United Resiliency Services (OURS), LGBT+ Center Orlando

Here's a look at the 18 committee members:

• Aracelis Maria Jimenez, lost a family member in the tragedy
• Brett Rigas, survivor and lost a family member in the tragedy
• Brian Reagan, survivor, former Pulse employee, artist
• Carlitos Diaz Rodriguez, family member of a survivor, architect/design professional, landscape architect, artist
• Cesar Rodriguez, survivor
• Felicia Burt, lost a family member in the tragedy
• Jamie Reed, lost a friend in the tragedy, architect/design professional, marketing professional
• Joshua Garcia, former Pulse employee, provided services after the tragedy, mental health professional
• Keinon Carter, survivor
• Kelly Dawson, lives in the Orlando area and felt the loss as a community member, architect/design professional
• Rev. Marcelino Rivera, lost a friend in the tragedy, provided services after the tragedy, clergy and artist
• Mayra Alvear BenabeI, lost a family member in the tragedy
• Norman Casiano-Mojica, survivor
• Nancy Rosado, provided services after the tragedy, mental health professional, community advocate, former first responder
• Perry T Snider Jr., lost a friend in the tragedy, former Pulse employee, artist
• Siclaly "Laly" M. Santiago-Leon, lost a family member in the tragedy
• Terrance Hunter, regularly visited or patronized Pulse, educator and museum professional
• Tommy Connelly, survivor, artist