APOPKA, Fla. — On Wednesday evening, the Apopka community came together for a vigil to honor the eight farmworkers who died in a Marion County bus crash Tuesday morning.

The vigil took place at the headquarters of The Farmworker Association of Florida.      

For the people at the vigil, they came to show solidarity. Even though Griselda Payne never knew the farmworkers who were killed, she’s a mother. 

Payne said she can’t imagine what the families are going through. 

“These kids came here to work; to give a better life to their families, to their kids, to their mothers, to their sisters, and look what happened,” Payne said. 

Throughout the pain, there’s a place for comfort.   

Sister Ann Kendrick was at the vigil, trying to help people find hope.

“It is part of the nature of this culture to be in solidarity with people who are suffering, people who are hurt,” Kendrick said. 

Ernesto Ruiz, a researcher with the Farmworkers Association of Florida, said, “We grieve in community, like we celebrate in community.”

He says with a loss like this, there is stress. The crash, in general, is being felt by many people, regardless of their connection to the victims.

Bryan Maclean Howard has been charged with eight counts of DUI manslaughter after a 2001 Ford Ranger pickup truck he was allegedly driving collided with a 2010 International bus carrying 53 migrant workers to a farm on State Road 40 just after 6:30 a.m.

Officials say eight people died in the crash, and at least 40 others were injured.

Investigators said seven of the eight people killed had already been pronounced dead at the scene and were still on the bus when they arrived just before 8:30 a.m.

Ruiz says it was personal to him to remember those impacted by the crash, especially since many of them travel here for work.

“It’s a tragedy. It’s a tragedy and we can’t fix it right. These lives are lost. The injuries are there, but we can bring attention to the unjust conditions that a lot of these farmworkers experience,” he said.

There were at least eight people in critical condition following the crash and more than 30 others were transported to local hospitals with injuries.

As this pain is still fresh, the Mexican consul in Orlando, Juan Sabines Guerrero, says he’s started calling family members of those who died. 

“It’s a process that’s very difficult to call with them,” Guerro said. 

As the work to support the victims and their families continues, the store owner James Brandl with the Coupon Kid Sales & Liquidation says he’s working with the families impacted by this tragedy. 

He says a few people are stopping by Thursday to get first aid products, medicine, and groceries.