It's happened again.    Another place of safety and refuge has been invaded by the violence of a world slightly off-kilter.   This morning during a performance of "ANNIE" at a Unitarian Church, a lone gunman walked in and began to fire.    And as seems to always happen during these moments of insanity....one person reminds us that we can be a little better than we thought.   

In coming days we will debate the reasons for the killer's actions.    We will be told reasons they think he did what he did.    And the reasons will fill us with dispair, for no matter what the reason we know that it was not good enough to destroy the lives of so many people.

So now, before we know why the killer acted as he did, let us remember the spirit of a good man...Greg McKendry.   A 60 year old usher who was married to a woman who loved him.   A foster parent and a man who helped others.   He was a big man physically and cared deeply for his church and it's people.  A soul who obviously believed that caring for others was worth his life.    A REAL CHRISTIAN WHO SHOWED HIS LOVE THROUGH HIS LIFE.

You see, when a gunman walked into that church in Knoxville, Tennessee today, Greg McKendry stepped in front of the first shotgun blast and protected everyone behind that giant-sized body given him by his god.   And God only knows how many lives he saved with that simple action.  His death granted time to others to run to safety.

 Tomorrow we will talk about the why and probably forget that the most memorable act was not the act of pulling the trigger...but that in the coldness of that moment, ONE MAN STOOD UP.      So  tonight before the media circus begins, let us simply say, "God Speed Greg McKendry. "