SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, TX (KSAT/CNN) - Less than two months after a deadly mass shooting, the community of Sutherland Springs came together for a traditional Christmas Eve service.
Twenty-six people were killed when a gunman opened fire on the congregation on Nov. 5. But that tragedy has not dampened the spirit of churchgoers. The Sunday service was filled with emotion, hugging, holding hands and praying. The congregation is still living with the memories of the day that changed their world.
“Where the shooter parked that day, because when I first looked out over my husband’s shoulder, I saw that and his vehicle there,” said church member Kathleen Curno, who lives with her husband across the street from the church. “That’s what’s hard for me.”
With so many members of their small church now gone, these are difficult days. But they say Pastor Frank Pomeroy expressed the town’s faith perfectly when he said, “Sutherland Springs looks to the light and looks for hope.”
Many churchgoers said they couldn’t thank Pomeroy enough. His daughter was one of the 26 killed that day, but church members said they know he is always there for everyone else.
“I have a hard time with the noises, and he prays with me, and for him to lose everything he lost and stop and pray with me so I can get a peaceful night’s sleep, and that the images that day will leave and be replaced by good ones,” Curno said. “I almost feel selfish, but that’s the kind of person he is.”
Church members say this Christmas is about faith and always looking toward the light.
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