Couple honors Las Vegas shooting victims with special stones

Each of the 58 rocks, marked with a red heart, represents a labor of love.

“This is truly just from her heart and my heart to the city of Las Vegas,” Don Dolan said of his and his wife’s artistic remembrance.

Over the last two weeks or so, Maxine Dolan painted individualized rocks for the 1 October shooting victims. She didn’t paint every day, but the days she did involved anywhere from two to eight hours of painting. She and her husband felt compelled to help in any way they could.

“My heart just felt so much pain for the victims and the families,” she said.

Maxine, Don and their daughter, Caitlyn Dolan, placed them Wednesday night at the Las Vegas Community Healing Garden, near Casino Center and Charleston boulevards. The family picked a patch of dirt between a flag pole and one of the trees decorated in victim memorials.

Don Dolan placed a rock for Sandra Casey, honoring the special education teacher with the text “special ed.” Maxine Dolan planted the stone commemorating Denise Cohen that bore tiny houses for the property manager. Caitlyn Dolan positioned the rock for Christopher Roybal, wearing an anchor representing the combat veteran’s time in the Navy.

“These people mattered,” said Maxine Dolan, standing among the rocks she dedicated dozens of hours to create.

They scoured the internet for victim information to try to personalize the rocks with their stories. Caitlyn Dolan painted many of the hearts.

“Every single one of them made us cry,” Don Dolan said. “Every single one of them broke our heart.”

With respect to the privacy of the victims’ families, the couple hadn’t reached out to them. Don Dolan said he hoped family members may eventually see the rocks on their own.

He named a handful of the 58 killed.

Bailey Schweitzer. Michelle Vo. Brennan Stewart.

“All of them, they’re part of us now,” Don Dolan said. “We know them.”

Contact Mike Shoro at mshoro@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5290. Follow @mike_shoro on Twitter.