Lay leader expresses gratitude for the support his flock has received from those near and far — and outside the faith.
(Screengrab from a video posted by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Jeffrey Schaub, bishop of the Latter-day Saint congregation in Grand Blanc, Michigan, reflects on the kindness his community has received since Sunday’s deadly attack.
Emotion rising in his voice, the leader of the Latter-day Saint congregation that suffered Sunday’s deadly attack in Michigan described a wounded congregation still reeling from the shooting and arson assault.
“Our members are quite shaken in body and spirit,” Bishop Jeffrey Schaub said in a video released Monday. “And it hurts.”
At the same time, the lay leader described overwhelming support from people near and far, including those who don’t belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“I know that people around the world are praying for our ward and our families,” Schaub said, “and I’m so grateful for that.”
Notes. Homemade meals. Care packages. All of this and more were waiting for Schaub and his family when they returned home after Sunday’s attack, which began around 10:25 a.m. when a gunman rammed his truck through the wall of the chapel and ended with fire consuming the entire building, reducing it to red brick rubble.
[Read the latest on the investigation, the number of victims and the “heroic” efforts of church members.]
Becca Wilson Jones, a member of a neighboring Latter-day Saint congregation, wrote Monday on Facebook that “nobody here is OK, but everyone is holding together to work toward OK.”
She stressed that the church had provided the members there with security, therapists, additional ecclesiastical support “and more.”
“This attack was on us, but it was on the whole church also,” she said, encouraging other Latter-day Saints beyond her community to seek help through calling 988 if they feel they are in need of support.
Reflecting on the aid given to his congregation, Schaub remarked: “It was very humbling to see how much good there is in the world today, and that, above all, we are all children of the same Father in Heaven.”