“This year, I turn an age he’ll never be.” 

The words came from Kirsten Brooks, the younger sister of Boulder police officer Eric Talley, who was shot and killed in the Boulder King Soopers shooting in March 2021. Brooks on Friday night addressed an audience of family, friends and community members who had gathered to remember the 10 lives lost that day.

“I’m his younger sister, but now I’m a year older than him. He didn’t get to live that long,” she said. 

Friday marks three years since the mass shooting at the Boulder grocery store, and Boulder residents showed up for the annual Boulder Strong Day of Remembrance.

Those killed were Denny Stong, 20; Neven Stanisic, 23; Rikki Olds, 25; Teri Leiker, 51; Suzanne Fountain, 59; Kevin Mahoney, 61; Lynn Murray, 62; Jody Waters, 65; Tralona Bartkowiak, 49; and, Talley, the Boulder police officer.

Brooks said she was coming home from a run when she got the call informing her that her older brother had been killed.

There’s still a dent in the wood floor by her front door, where she dropped the water bottle she was holding when she heard her mother wail over the phone, she said.

Talley was snarky and talked too much, and he was always right, she said. He was her hero.

“I feel often Eric all around me, his presence, and I wonder sometimes if you feel that way about the people you lost,” she said to the other family members in the room. “I wonder sometimes if you flinch when you hear sirens, if you also see the darkness that swept through that day.”

Brooks apologized to the audience through tears, saying she was sorry he didn’t get there sooner to save the other nine people killed that day.

“Because my brother was the police officer, I honestly feel like I owe an apology to all of you that there’s 10 trees here,” Brooks said, motioning to the lighted trees on stage representing the victims. “That he didn’t make it to save everyone.”

Phi Bernier, the life partner of victim Suzanne Fountain, played a song for the audience that he wrote about Fountain, saying, “This one’s for Suzy.”

“For the last three years, I’ve done nothing but write songs about her,” he said. “It’s the only thing on my mind.”

Bernier’s song questioned why the shooting happened when it did, taking his “guiding light” and the person who “made him complete,” the lyrics said.

On the afternoon of March 22, 2021, police alleged that then-21-year-old Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa opened fire with a semi-automatic pistol in the King Soopers parking lot before moving inside to stalk the aisles. Ambulance crews from around the region responded to a scene that had only one memorable, transportable injury — Alissa, who was shot in the leg prior to being taken into custody.

Alissa’s trial has been delayed for multiple years due to questions about his competency to stand trial.

However, after evaluations and treatment, Boulder District Judge Ingrid Bakke determined that he is competent, meaning he can understand the proceedings and assist in his own defense.

In November, Alissa pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. He has been staying in the state’s mental health hospital, where he is being medicated for schizophrenia and psychosis.

Alissa’s jury trial is set for Aug. 5 through Aug. 30, starting at 8 a.m. each day. Bakke has asked for the mental health hospital to create an insanity report. Hospital staff have asked for more time for things like family member interviews, which they need a translator for, according to court documents.

At Friday’s event, District Attorney Michael Dougherty said the case has gone on “longer than anyone had hoped.”

While the criminal case has been long and hard, Dougherty said, it’s been an “honor” to work with the victims’ families.

“Their strength and resiliency is remarkable,” he said. “This criminal case is a longer journey than we had hoped, but even when the criminal case is done and closed, the loss, the void will go on.”

Boulder Mayor Aaron Brockett echoed the admiration for people’s resilience, saying the community has made the “Boulder Strong” phrase come to life.

Brockett was on the city council when the shooting happened, and he said he will never forget the “grief and horror” of that day.

“But no matter what comes our way, our community continually demonstrates resilience and support for one another in the wake of tough and tragic events,” Brockett said. “Together, we truly are Boulder Strong.”

The phrase “Boulder Strong” means the community is stronger together, a truth that shines through in the annual event, Boulder’s assistant city manager, Pam Davis, said. 

“There’s a sort of community building and hope that folks are feeling by having a place to gather and remember, honor and celebrate lives, and also be reminded of the strength of this community and the commitment to try to make it a safer and better place,” Davis said.

When the shooting happened, it was in the midst of the pandemic and followed by multiple wildfires and other community challenges, Davis said.

While it was exhausting for the community to go through a series of traumatic events like this, it gave the city “opportunities to show how resilient we are,” she said.

Residents who are experiencing trauma related to the mass shooting on March 22, 2021 are welcome to visit the Boulder Strong Resource Center at 2935 Baseline Road in Boulder, officials said, adding the center offers a place of healing and support for those affected by the tragedy.