Funerals Held For 4 Amish Girls Killed In School Shooting
Posted October 5, 2006 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The families and friends of the young victims prayed at three homes before burying the girls, Naomi Rose Ebersole, 7; Marian Fisher, 13; and sisters Mary Liz Miller, 8, and Lena Miller, 7. A funeral for the fifth child killed in the attack will take place Friday.
“I just think at this point mostly these families want to be left alone in their grief and we ought to respect that,” said Dr. Holmes Morton, who runs a clinic that serves Amish children.
And on a day of incredible sadness there was more troubling news: there are reports that the death toll could increase by one. Lancaster County coroner Gary Kirchner said a doctor at Penn State Children’s Hospital informed him that doctors expected to take a victim off life support. It’s believed the action is being taken so the child can die at home.
On Monday 32-year-old milk truck driver Charles Roberts took 10 girls hostage in their schoolhouse and opened fire, killing five children. In suicide notes left for his wife and children, the killer claimed he’d molested two young family members 20 years ago and authorities believe he may have intended to sexually assault his hostages, but there is no evidence he did.
In an incredible gesture of forgiveness, some Amish mourners driving horse-drawn buggies reportedly rode past the house the gunman shared with his wife and three children. The closed community has reached out to Roberts’ family offering support and forgiveness.
Between 300 and 500 people were expected to attend each funeral service Thursday, which in the Amish community are traditionally held in the homes.
