Chester Bennington, the frontman of Linkin Park who committed suicide on July 20, has been laid to rest near his home in Palos Verdes, CA at a Saturday afternoon service at the South Coast Botanical Garden. Among those in attendance were musicians who had known Chester and played or toured with him and the band. The service included a full stage set up for musical tributes.
In a sweet touch, those who attended the funeral were given wristbands and tickets that were designed to look like concert passes.
The family decided to have a private funeral with close family and friends, but fans around the world have organized their own memorials for the Linkin Park singer. Founder of the band Mark Shinoda tweeted out a link to a big Google Doc full of information about more than 300 memorials all over the world to be held in honor of Chester Bennington. Some of these will be held at the same venues that the band would have played at before cancelling their tour following the death of their frontman.
Linkin Park bassist Dave "Phoenix" Farrell also took to Twitter to pay his respects, sending out a series of heartfelt tweets and retweeting several fan photos from memorials from places like Naples, Italy, Johannesburg, South Africa, Lima, Peru, London and New York City.
It goes without saying, this last week has been extremely difficult. The outpouring of love and kindness I've received from friends and (1)
Fans from all over the world has been incredible. I wish I could personally thank every one of you for your love and support... (2)
A huge part of Chester's legacy will be the memories we hold of him in our hearts. He was an enthusiastic, playful father... (3)
An honest, and passionate musician, and a loyal friend. I've been touched to see memorials that have been held worldwide. (4)
Chester Bennington was 41 years old and leaves behind a wife and six children. According to law enforcement, Bennington hanged himself at a Palos Verdes Estates residence in Los Angeles County.
In a statement released last week, Linkin Park mourned the loss of their band member. Part of the statement reads:
You touched so many lives, maybe even more than you realized. In the past few days, we’ve seen an outpouring of love and support, both public and private, from around the world. Talinda and the family appreciate it, and want the world to know that you were the best husband, son, and father; the family will never be whole without you.
