In Cambridge, a cyclist paid tribute at a “spiritual bicycle” ceremony.

“Transform this place from a place of death to a place of life,” was the mantra of the crowd that accompanied them repeated simultaneously many times during the emotional tribute.

Many people attending the ceremony rode their bikes to the site to remember the father of two. There was heavy traffic on the dangerous section, and orange markings appeared on the narrow sidewalk and the road where the accident occurred.

The event took place the evening after a mass bike ride through Boston and Cambridge, followed by calls for safer roads. Attendees at Saturday’s ceremony said Corcoran was a careful cyclist, a loving family man and a caring and brilliant friend.

His children, who are students at Harvard University, said he did everything for his family. This was said by Jack and Christi Corcoran was powerful to see first hand how many people came together to give strength to his family as they mourn his sudden loss.

Corcoran, who also attended Harvard University decades earlier, spent every moment he wasn’t working with his family, said Jack, 21. Corcoran, his children and wife loved riding bikes together, regularly teasing him about the carefully slow pace.

“He was a truly generous man. He gave a lot to my family,” Jack said.

He said this also included their small white dog, Juliet, which he kept on a leash. Jack said his father took Juliet everywhere.

“He was just really compassionate,” Christi (20) added.

She said Corcoran always stopped to help injured animals and made every effort to save them.

The Rev. Jay Weldon of Good Shepherd Parish in Waban and the Rev. Laura Everett, executive director of the Massachusetts Council of Churches, spoke of the overwhelming sadness felt by the community as they collectively mourned the loss of another cyclist.

“We are here to unite our hearts,” said Weldon, a close family friend.

He said everyone came to the event to honor Corcoran and recommit to advocating for safe streets for cyclists and zero road deaths.

“We’re all just people trying to get home alive,” he said.

During the heartbreaking memorial, the precarious nature of this stretch was often on display as cars passed by and cyclists tried to safely get around the boat dock. Several of them narrowly avoided being hit, causing people in the crowd to wince. Many people pointed to the 20 mph speed limit in effect, noting that drivers were driving much faster down the street.

The tense situation on that stretch of Memorial Drive is one that advocates have long urged officials to fix. The Department of Environmental Protection and Recreation says it has plans to do so, but the agency has not provided a timeline.

““We’re hoping that my dad… will be the last one before the city really starts making some positive changes,” said Jack, who noted that it was devastating for the family to learn that many people had previously warned officials that changes to the area were needed.

Christi echoed that sentiment, saying it “really breaks my heart” that the plans were approved but not implemented “because it’s not a priority.”

Bicycle advocates Peter Cheung and Galen Mook brought a ghost bike to the site for the somber occasion.

It was the 35th such tribute to Cheung, the founder of Boston Ghost Bikes, who has called for better infrastructure and roadway design changes to make the area safer for cyclists.

“Now is the time for advocacy. It’s time for change. But what we have here now is a time to remember,” Mook, executive director of the MassBike advocacy group, said at the ceremony.

At the end of the event, the motorcycle, which was surrounded by lighted tea lights, was dedicated to Corcoran. His family gathered around, hugged each other with tears in their eyes, and touched the bike.

Barbara Bower, Corcoran’s wife, called the tribute beautiful and said she felt better knowing she was not alone mourns her husband. She noted that supporters intentionally chose a bike with upright handles – one that her husband loved to ride.

“At some point someone will scream. “At some points you are a little numb or in shock,” she said.

But she will keep the sweet moments she shared with Corcoran. She’ll remember his weird tendency to use funny words instead of real ones, like “pooza” instead of “pizza.”

She said Bower plans to return the location where the ghost bike was located.

“He was really cute. He was really sweet, funny, smart and loving,” she said.

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Shannon Larson can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her @shannonlarson98.