Hundreds of people have gathered in a Texas town for the first Sunday service since 26 people were killed in the church mass shooting a week ago.
Pastor Frank Pomeroy led congregants of the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs on Sunday as roughly 500 people crowded into a white tent for an emotional service near the site of the massacre.
Pomeroy’s 14-year-old daughter was among those killed when former disgraced US Air Force officer Devin Kelley opened fire during last week’s Sunday service.
The church is set to be demolished and rebuilt elsewhere given the painful reminder it currently poses for the members of relatives of the victims.
Hundreds of people crowded into a white tent near the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs on Sunday for the first church service since 26 people were gunned down last week
‘Rather than choose darkness as that young man did that day, we choose life,’ Pomeroy told the congregation on Sunday to thunderous applause.
Some waved Bibles in the air, while a dozen bikers from a nearby chapter of Harley-Davidson motorcycle riders watched vigilantly from the back.
‘I know everyone who gave their life that day,’ Pomeroy said as he spoke of losing his child.
‘Some of whom where my best friends and my daughter.’
He paused to wipe his eyes.
‘I guarantee they are dancing with Jesus today.’
The crowd stood, clapped and raised their hands to heaven as Pomeroy spoke.
Sunday’s service came a week after 26 members of the congregation were gunned down when Devin Kelley stormed in an opened fire
Roughly 500 people – the equivalent of the town’s entire population – crowded into a white tent for an emotional service near the site of the massacre on Sunday
Republican Sen. John Cornyn (above with wife his wife Sandy) spoke at the service and paid his respects to the slain victims, saying lives were stolen as darkness overtook one man’s heart
The initial plan was to hold the service at the community center next to the First Baptist Church, but it can only accommodate a few dozen people.
When organizers realized hundreds planned to attend – roughly the equivalent of the town’s entire population – the service was moved to massive white tent erected in a baseball field.
So many people turned up that the tent’s side flaps had to be opened so that those who couldn’t get a seat could see and hear what was going on inside.
Mark Collins, a previous pastor at First Baptist, said it was the largest gathering in the church’s 100-year history.
The front three rows were reserved for survivors of the attack and the families of those killed. Twenty-six chairs were left empty in honor of those who were killed.
The gunman died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after he was shot and chased by two men who heard the gunfire at the church.
The church is set to be demolished and rebuilt elsewhere given the painful reminder it currently poses for the members of relatives of the victims
A dozen bikers from a nearby chapter of Harley-Davidson motorcycle riders watched vigilantly from the back as the service played out on Sunday
So many people turned up that the tent’s side flaps had to be opened so that those who couldn’t get a seat could see and hear what was going on inside
Investigators have said the attack appeared to stem from a domestic dispute involving Kelley and his mother-in-law, who sometimes attended services at the church but wasn’t there the day of the shooting.
Kelley had a history of domestic violence: He was given a bad conduct discharge from the Air Force after pleading guilty to assaulting his first wife and stepson.
For Sunday’s service, people from other churches dropped off handmade prayer cloths and tiny wooden crosses, among other gifts. Mental health organizations provided tissues and brought therapy dogs to the service.
Republican Sen. John Cornyn spoke at the service, saying lives were stolen as darkness overtook one man’s heart.
‘The pain of losing 26 members is overwhelming,’ Cronyn said. ‘Many lives have been changed forever. … I can’t imagine what you’ve been grappling with ever since.’
On Saturday, about 100 people gathered outside the community center to commemorate Veterans Day and honor the shooting victims, nearly half of whom had Air Force ties.
A woman prays along a fence for the victims of the shooting outside of the Sutherland Springs Baptist Church following a service held at a temporary site on Sunday
Mourners were pictured leaving a worship service for the victims of the shooting at Sutherland Springs Baptist Church on Sunday
‘Maybe this will start the healing process that will get Sutherland Springs and Wilson County to put this horrific tragedy behind us and look to the future,’ county Judge Richard Jackson, his voice breaking, told the Saturday crowd, which included first responders and law enforcement officers.
Jackson, the county’s top administrator, thanked the first responders and others who rushed to First Baptist Church in the aftermath of last Sunday’s shooting, which also wounded about 20 people. What they saw there will affect them the rest of their lives, Jackson said.
Sutherland Springs is about 30 miles (48 kilometers) southeast of San Antonio and not far from several military posts, including Lackland Air Force Base. The Air Force’s chief of staff, Gen. David Goldfein, said 12 of those killed were either members of the Air Force or had family ties to it.
On Saturday, two silver hearses carried the bodies another couple, Therese and Richard Rodriguez, to a small cemetery on the edge of Sutherland Springs following a funeral.
A steady stream of people also visited a makeshift memorial of crosses adorned with flowers, photographs, red hearts and white, purple and pink balloons. Among them was Jackie Lee, who traveled from San Antonio with several friends.
‘It was on my heart since it happened,’ she said. ‘I needed to come to show the community some support, to show these people some support.’