It's been nearly two weeks since two young men were stabbed to death in a 24-hour period on opposite ends of Ventura County.

With both killings still unsolved, a community group has planned a vigil in honor of the two 18-year-old victims, hoping to bring attention to the cases and prevent future violence.

Organized by the Ventura County chapter of Parents of Murdered Children with help from the Police Department Clergy Council, the vigil for victims Andrew John Singler and Kyle Swartz will be at 7 p.m. Friday in Camarillo's Constitution Park, 1287 Paseo Drive. Participants are asked to take a candle.

The gathering of relatives, friends, community members and law enforcement officials is meant to show that in addition to taking a life, murders devastate families and communities, said Sandy Montes-Cerna. She is a board member of the local branch of Parents of Murdered Children, a national nonprofit group that provides support for survivors of murder victims.

"We are all responsible to keep our community safe," said Montes-Cerna, whose nephew, Carlos Prado, was shot to death in 2006. "Today it's the Singler and the Swartz families' grief. We never think it will touch us, but many times it does."

Singler's mother, Jackie, said she was sheltered before her son was killed in the early hours of June 14. Singler was stabbed in the chest during a fight outside a graduation party west of Moorpark, authorities said.

The Ventura County Sheriff's Department this week was still tracking down leads and interviewing the more than 100 people at the party, said Capt. Ross Bonfiglio.

Jackie Singler said people who attended the party told her that members of a gang crashed the event, then picked a fight with one of her son's friends. Her son, standing nearby, was jumped and stabbed when he went to help his friend, she said.

She described her son as a peacemaker who had been nonviolent all his life. He was killed a few weeks before his 19th birthday.

She said she now wants others to know that violence can erupt at parties, even in tranquil communities.

"I didn't know we had these kind of problems," said the Camarillo woman. "This is around and it's real."

The morning before Singler was killed, Kyle Swartz of Oxnard was stabbed multiple times during a fight in Port Hueneme. Police do not believe the two killings are related.

At least four people were involved in the Port Hueneme fight, possibly including some with gang ties, police Cmdr. Jerry Beck said without elaborating.

Swartz's mother, Kathy Blanchard, said her son was a great person. She believes police are doing everything they can to solve his case.

Investigators are working hard on the case, but they can't solve it alone, Beck said. "We are kind of at a loss to figure out exactly what transpired. We need people to come forward," he said.

Friday's event will be the first of its kind organized by the local Parents of Murdered Children, Montes-Cerna said. With the consent of victims' families, the group aims to organize a similar event after every homicide in Ventura County.