The teacher is was killed Last week's mass shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin explained Her pastor described her as “a woman who loved Jesus and loved people.''
Last Monday, 15-year-old Natalie “Samantha” Lupenau shot and killed DeForest educator Erin West, 42, and Madison student Rubi Patricia Vergara, 14. Two additional students were seriously injured and remained hospitalized.
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Rob Warren, pastor of Doxa Church, where West attended, remembered her as a valued member of the church and Christian school community., Christian Posst report.
“She was a woman who loved Jesus and loved people. That's honestly why she was in that classroom Monday,” Warren said. WKOW Reported.
He noted that Erin, her husband, and their three daughters joined Doxa Church about two years ago.
Warren was one of the first responders on the scene last Monday, trying to calm the nerves of anxious parents waiting to be reunited with their children. He was also the first to break the tragic news to Erin's husband and three daughters.
“We just sat there with him and cried,” Warren said.
The pastor explained that although he has witnessed mass shootings all over the country, this one happened unexpectedly and close to home.
“That's your friend, and the The children of your friends that you see. It’s becoming more and more real,” Warren said.
“The pastor knows it's not just a feeling of, 'One day we'll see each other again, she's at peace.' Because of her faith, we know she's actually at peace now. I know,” the pastor continued.
west funeral happened Services will be held at noon Monday at Doxa Church in Madison, with visitation beginning at 10 a.m. the same day. Meanwhile, Rubi Vergara's church service was held on Saturday at the City Church next to the school.
As part of the continuing investigation into the shooting at Abundant Life Christian School, authorities said Friday that arrested The suspect, Alexander Paffendorf, 20, of Carlsbad, California, had firearms and ammunition seized from his home. The FBI searched his home on Tuesday, according to a gun violence restraining order obtained by CBS 8 in San Diego.
Paffendorf There is a suspicion having been in contact with Lupnow and planning a second attack in connection with the December 16th shooting.
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