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April 23, 2007
Remembering a fallen friend
They say that there are certain moments in life where you will always remember where you were and what you were doing when they happened.
I had one of those moments a year ago today, and it changed my life.
Sunday Night Baseball was on the television and I was absent-mindedly swinging a pitching wedge in my apartment when my cell phone rang, bringing with it the voice of an old friend who could barely choke out the words.
Nation shocked by tragic shootings at Virginia Tech
Washington University students came together Monday night for an impromptu candlelight vigil commemorating the Virginia Tech students who were wounded and killed on Monday. On Tuesday, Student Union began to distribute maroon-orange ribbons and held its own vigil.
The shooting was the deadliest in modern U.S. history with a total death toll of 33; 32 students and a gunman who took his own life. At least 29 others were wounded.
The faces and names of the dead brought home from Iraq are what you see.
What you don't see are the faces of Iraqis and coalition force members who Petty Officer 2nd Class Curtis R. Hall helped save before a 107 mm rocket blasted his convoy, killing Hall and two other sailors on his explosives team. Navy officials initially said Hall was killed by a roadside bomb.
Burley native killed Soldier killed while defusing bombs in Iraq
Petty Officer 2nd Class Curtis Hall, 24, of Burley was the type of man you might expect to volunteer to defuse bombs, to save people.
The towering 6-foot-7-inch former high school basketball player "was like a ray of sunshine," said his sister, Brenda Thibeault, 37. "He loved to tease and play, but knew where the line was. He always knew how just to have fun."
He was already a hero long before he died Friday in Iraq, while assigned to defusing and detonating bombs. Hall was probably killed by an improvised explosive device, or IED, although no specifics have been released, said a spokeswoman for Navy public affairs at the Pentagon.
Mormons counseled to find forgiveness after tragedy
Mormons should strive for forgiveness despite the anger and bitterness that can follow tragedy, an elder in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints counseled Sunday, the second day of the faith's biannual conference.
"Most of us need time to work through pain and loss. We can find all manner of reasons for postponing forgiveness," an emotional James E. Faust, one of two counselors to church President Gordon B. Hinckley said.
The flag was lowered to half-staff outside Fairport High School on Wednesday, as students and staff mourned the loss of student Natalie Giambattista, 16, who died Tuesday of cancer.
Natalie's favorite colors of orange and yellow were seen on small bows worn by principal David Paddock and other students, in her memory.
Students also made posters containing special notes for the teenager, who would have turned 17 next week.
Fire breaks out in roof of Anchorage Mormon chapel
More than 60 Anchorage firefighters battled for nearly 12 hours a fire that broke out in the roof of a south Anchorage Mormon chapel.
Thursday was a hard day for thousands in Alaska's faith community. A fire erupted at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in South Anchorage at 3:30 in the morning. No one was injured, but thousands of Mormons are now without a church home. Sadly, it's not the first time.
A student from Oregon City has died in an ATV accident in Idaho.
Allison Brady was on an ATV with her boyfriend at the St. Anthony Sand Dunes when they went off a cliff, lost control of the machine and were thrown several feet on Friday.
Neiher were wearing helmets. Brady was killed instantly. The boyfriend fractured his jaw and received a leg injury in the accident. He was treated and released at the hospital.
Whatever Kirsten Hinckley could have been, whoever she would have become, no one will ever know. She will forever remain a budding teenager, "sweet baby Kirsten," perfectly preserved in memory, but never given the chance to grow up.
Killed at her mother's side at Trolley Square in what her brother called "the selfish act of one person," Kirsten was brought to life Wednesday at her funeral as family members mourned while celebrating her sweetness, friendship and warmth.
A crowd of hundreds attended funeral services for siblings Brooke Probst, 15, and Brant Probst, 12, Saturday in Emmett, remembering them as devoutly religious and committed to excellence.
The Probst children died along with three other young people Tuesday when their car slipped on ice and veered into a pond.
More than 1,000 mourners gathered this weekend at funeral services for a pregnant woman and two of her children killed Feb. 9 when their car collided with a suspected drunk driver.
Forty-one-year old Michelle Williams was remembered as an upbeat, enthusiastic and perfect mother. She was five months pregnant with a baby boy.
While mourning 15-year-old Kirsten Hinckley and praying for her wounded mother, Carolyn Tuft, their family takes solace in what they say was one miracle at the Trolley Square shooting.
Church Offers Condolences to Victims of Salt Lake Shooting Tragedy
On behalf of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Merrill J. Bateman, a member of the Presidency of the Seventy, issued the following statement regarding the shootings that occurred last night at Trolley Square in Salt Lake City:
“We are deeply saddened at the deaths and suffering caused by this senseless tragedy. Our sympathy and prayers go out to all who have been affected, especially the families and friends of the victims.
“Although it is difficult to explain the conflicts and incongruities of life, we are certain that through the atoning sacrifice and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ death is not the end and life continues in the hereafter.
“We pray that His spirit will bring comfort, peace and healing to all at this difficult time.”
Elder Bateman said the Church is also offering grief counseling to those affected by this tragic event through LDS Family Services (LDSFS). The Salt Lake agency of LDSFS can be reached at 801-240-1711.
Valentine's Day and birthdays. Dinner and a quiet evening with friends and loved ones. These were the simple pleasures so violently interrupted by 18-year-old Sulejman Talovic as he strolled, shotgun in hand, into Trolley Square on Monday evening.
His victims — those he killed and those he injured — are loved and admired, and are missed. Their heartbroken families, friends, co-workers and neighbors paid tribute to them Tuesday.
Certain events in history such as the Mountain Meadows Massacre are often considered to be a blot on the history of the LDS people, said Thomas Alexander, BYU professor emeritus of western history Monday, Feb. 12, 2007, at UVSC.
This massacre and specifically, the church's investigation into the massacre, was the subject of Alexander's presentation.
To those who wonder how Chris Williams was so quick to forgive the teenager who crashed into his car Friday, killing his wife and two children, consider this:
When Williams was 16, he accidentally struck and killed a 4-year-old boy in the Avenues.
The world is a place that presents a lot of questions when you're 3 years old.
Yet, perhaps because he is well grounded in the faith of his family, Raymond Debuty seems to have a grasp on what happened to his four older brothers and sisters that far exceeds his years.
He knew the children he referred to as "my kids" had all perished even before the firefighters had extinguished the flames at the only home he ever knew on a cruelly cold morning last week.
"He knows they died," said Raymond's mother, Amanda Debuty. "He said, 'Mommy, they're with Jesus.' He knows how this works."
Though he tried to slip in unnoticed during Sunday morning's meeting at the Salt Lake City LDS wardhouse where he currently serves as bishop, the congregation was just too glad to see him.
With a broken rib and bruised lungs - injuries he sustained during a violent collision Friday night that claimed the lives of his pregnant wife and two of his children - Chris Williams instead gingerly took his normal place behind the pulpit alongside the other leaders of Crystal Heights 2nd Ward, said Stake President James Wood.
Members of Salt Lake City's LDS Crystal Heights 2nd Ward will be fasting and praying today for a family killed in a tragic accident believed to have been caused by a teenager driving drunk.
Christopher Williams, 42, remains hospitalized along with his 6-year-old son, Sam. Salt Lake City police said both were listed in serious condition.
