FREDONIA, N.Y. — A candlelight vigil was held Saturday evening for Mackenzie "Kenzie" Michalski, 31, a nurse practitioner originally from Fredonia who was killed while on vacation in Budapest, Hungary.
Melissa Pietrkiewicz, is close friends with Mackenzie's mother, Jill. She helped organize the vigil in a matter of hours.
"I hope that people here leave in a little bit of peace that if they need to grieve with other people there's people that are available to grieve with them," said Pietrkiewicz.
The community coming together to remember one of their own.
"That's what this is all about you know a small community we look out for one another, we love one another, and we grieve with one another when it's necessary," said Freedonia Mayor Michael Ferguson.
Michalski worked for several years at Buffalo General before relocating to Portland, Ore. She recently traveled to Budapest and was scheduled to return to the United States this week.
She never checked out of the Airbnb in Budapest, never made her flight, and was soon reported as missing. Budapest Police recently confirmed that her body had been found that a 37-year-old Irish man was arrested in connection with her death.
The vigil started at 6 p.m. Saturday at Barker Commons in Fredonia, where people came to mourned Michalski's death.
"Bring your candle. Bring your love. We will continue to hold the light as we honor Kenzie and her beautiful light that she shared with so many," organizers said on Facebook.