The Pulse Nightclub Memorial (c) OutUK | Few LGBT people will forget the events of ten years ago on 12th June 2016, when an armed gunman carried out what was then the worst mass shooting in U.S. history and the deadliest ever against LGBT people, at the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando. 49 people lost their lives and 53 others were wounded in a late night hate crime attack in Florida's City Beautiful. |
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For many years the site of the nightclub became a makeshift memorial filled with colorful artwork, flowers, and vigils. Many local people
both gay and straight looked after the site paying tribute to the victims of the atrocity. OutUK visited Orange Avenue to experience the way
in which the community pulled together to support those who were involved.
The Pulse Nightclub opened on 2 July 2004 founded by Barbara Poma and Ron Legler. Poma's brother, John, died in 1991 from AIDS, and the club was "named for John's pulse to live on". Poma ensured that her brother's memory was prominent on the website, that the facility was more than "just another gay club". Ron Legler was President of the Florida Theatrical Association at the time of the foundation, and set up two other nightclubs in Florida before he left for Baltimore in 2011. | |
The Pulse Nightclub Memorial (c) OutUK | The Washington Post described the first 12 years of the Pulse Nightclub as "a community hub for HIV prevention, breast-cancer awareness and immigrant rights", and reported it had partnered with educational and advocacy groups such as Come Out with Pride and Equality Florida raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for combating HIV & Cancer and defending human rights. |
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On the 12th June 2016, 29-year-old Omar Mateen killed 49 people and wounded 53 others in a mass shooting, after which he swore allegiance
to ISIS during a 911 call. The attack was, at the time, the deadliest single gunman mass shooting in United States history, the deadliest incident of
violence against LGBT people in U.S. history, and the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil since the September 11 attacks of 2001.
Within a few weeks the onePULSE Foundation was established by owners of The Pulse, Barbara and Rosario Poma, and a plan emerged to build a memorial on the site of the club, in tribute to those affected by the tragedy. | |
| Barbara Poma became the main fundraiser of the foundation and it's Executive Director. Setting up the charity she said, "Today, I'm able to share with you what I believe is news that will help in our mission of healing. It isn't easy for me to stand on this site. What began as a place for fun and joy is now sacred ground." Local people and businesses began to donate to the cause. |
The Pulse Nightclub Memorial (c) OutUK |
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In the years that followed the foundation ran a multi-million dollar fundraising effort so that they could build not only the memorial but also
a museum at the Orange Avenue site. By 2021 things had begun to go wrong and Poma was ousted from her role as head of the organisation.
Talks between the onePULSE Foundation and the nightclub owners broke down after the charity asked for a full donation of the Pulse nightclub property.
Barbara Poma's response was to ask the foundation to pay her, her husband and their business partner Michael Panaggio two and a quarter
million dollars for the property, and to compensate for her replacement as Executive Director and full departure from the foundation.
onePULSE's original plan was to create and support a memorial that opened hearts, a museum that opened minds, an educational programs that opened eyes and legacy scholarships that opened doors. Its vision was to establish a sanctuary of healing and a beacon of hope by memorialising lives taken, lives saved, and lives affected by the tragedy. Poma had claimed that she and her husband were willing to donate the Pulse nightclub property to the Foundation but a third party, their business partner, was not. Daytona Beach-based businessman Mike Panaggio said, "I am a silent investor that should never be asked to donate to a cause I'm not involved with in any way. It's desperation, the Pulse Foundation is obviously not well." The foundation in response announced that it was moving forward with plans for the National Pulse Memorial, but on a new site. There were many financial concerns surrounding the onePULSE Foundation at the time. Their tax returns showed fundraising efforts for the memorial and museum had not kept pace with the ballooning costs of the proposed build. The foundation realised that the costs for the memorial and museum had more than doubled since it's conception. | |
The Pulse Nightclub Memorial (c) OutUK | The entire project was going to have to be reconsidered. Millions had been spent on land purchases, design costs, and executive salaries yet little had been achieved. Having raised 20 million dollars, the foundation folded without creating either the memorial or museum. They'd been operating for some time in deficit and they had no money left to return to donors. |
| Soon after the onePULSE Foundation disbanded, The City of Orlando approved purchase of the Orange Avenue site to convert what was then a temporary memorial into a permanent one. In December 2023, Mayor Buddy Dyer announced that the city would establish the Orlando United Pulse Memorial Fund, in an effort to raise funds for the newly designed, and less expensive permanent memorial. The fund would hope to raise money from community donations including local people, local businesses, community organisations, and wealthy individuals. | |
The Pulse Nightclub Memorial (c) OutUK | The 2025 Florida state budget included $394,421 for the Pulse National Memorial to supplement money previously raised for the project. Earlier this year in 2026, the Pulse nightclub building was demolished to make way for a $12 million permanent memorial, planned to open in 2027. The Pulse nightclub sign was preserved and put into storage for usage in the future memorial. |
| The project will now see a complete transformation of the original Orlando nightclub site into a memorial park. A portion of the original Pulse dance floor is being preserved and placed directly beneath a reflecting pool within the former club's footprint. Additionally, the club's breach wall will be salvaged and placed at the foot of an obelisk. The finalised design includes 49 individual tribute markers, a survivors' wall, a recognition of the bravery of first responders and a healing garden. | |