GREEKTOWN — Sundays candlelight vigil for Greektown security guard Daryll Straughter began with the sound of greek song.
A soft ballad for the strong man loved for his incredibly gentle demeanor.
"It takes a big man to do a really tough job in a soft way and that’s what I think everybody remembers most about him," said Jason Bernard who worked with Straughter. "He did a really hard thing to do in a really really nice way."
A security guard in Greektown for over 20 years, family and friends say Straughter was born to protect others.
"He had a loving, bubbly heart," said Lacey Pollard who also worked with Straughter.
Yanni Dionisopoulos, the owner of Golden Fleece in Greektown said, "Eerybody is saying how he had the warmest hugs and how he didn’t even work at some of the places and he still assisted."
Lost in a senseless act of violence, the guardian of Greektown has been honored with countless awards from the city and a promise that what happened to him cannot happen again.
"We’ve survived a lot of real danger down here," said Bernard. "A lot of scary things. Shootings, stabbings, big fights and all that. To lose a warrior kind of senselessly, hurts extra… a lot extra."
Dionisopoulos said "I think it’s time we work together, because we all came together today, to put an end to this."
The man described as a "gentle giant with a huge heart" leaves behind four kids, a wife, and a whole downtown community.
Sunday night they all gathered together under thee twinkling lights Straughter protected under to say their goodbyes.
Pollard said he'll remember, "His integrity, his heart, his loyalty, he was the guardian."
"Our guardian angel officially now," said Dionisopoulos.
Click hereto view a GoFundMe for Straughter's family.
