WOODSTOCK – Candles held Thursday evening on the Woodstock Square seemed as somber as the Square’s holiday lights were cheery.

A crowd, many among them teachers and elected officials, met for a candlelight vigil to honor the victims of the Dec. 14 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.

Barely visible under the hood of her long, winter jacket, Mary Moltmann, a retired McHenry County College psychology instructor, said she was surprised and pleased with the turnout. Organizer Leslie Schermerhorn, superintendent of the McHenry County Regional Office of Education, estimated the crowd at 100 people.