God Bless the families

I don’t want to write this, I really, really don’t. At the same time I know that if I don’t, it is a copout.
Bossier Parish Sheriff’s spokesman Ed Baswell said today that it appears that the death of two teenagers was a suicide pact between the two. Both left notes in the cab of the pickup truck where they were found.
The two teenagers were identified as Myranda Becton, 15 and Dylan Kennedy, 16.
Dylan left a note referring to Romeo and Juliet, and several other notes trying to convey why they were doing what they were doing.
We have all read the statistics and articles about teen suicide, indeed we have seen it in our communities. There is even a website dedicated to the subject, and it offers warning signs to watch for. The problem I see with the warning signs is that every normal teenager displays these described behaviors at some point. But that is not what this is about.
From what I hear, Myranda and Dylan both had loving, caring families.
I know that right now these families are going through shock, intense grief and denial. It is hard to lose any family member to any cause, but it is harder to lose someone to suicide.
You can understand if someone is killed in an accident, or if they suffer from an illness and die. You still miss them with all of your heart, but you understand what happened to them.
Families of people who die by their own hand never, ever understand why.
In June of 1968 I turned 21, typically ready to take on the world. In June of 1968 my oldest brother killed himself. Forty two years later I am still asking myself why, and what I could have done to help him.
I visited with him the night before he died. We were watching the news at his house, Robert Kennedy had been assassinated and the reporters were conjecturing on funeral plans and arrangements. My brother turned to me and said “When I die, just put me in a pine box and bury me. There is no need to go to any trouble.”
Was that a sign? In retrospect, certainly. Did I have a clue? No.
He was 33 years old and left behind a wife and three children.
I am writing this because I know what these families are going through, and what they will go through for the rest of their lives. After 42 years, sitting down to write this, it feels as if I have been stabbed in the heart.
It never goes away, and it will be worse for the parents of these children than it has been for me. My mother lived to within 3 months of her 90th birthday, and never was the same person. She would barely talk about my brother, and she fiercely repressed those memories. We knew that it was that painful for her.
When she was on her deathbed with cancer eating up her tiny body, I knew that she was between worlds. She was in a lot of pain.
When I took her hand and asked her if she knew who I was, she gave me the sweetest smile and said ‘yes’, and called me by my brothers name.
And that was okay.
If you are a praying person, please pray for these families. They need all the love and support they can receive right now, and they will need immeasurable strength in the future.

Teenage murder/suicide in North Bossier

In a tragic loss to two local families, two 16 year olds, a boy and a girl, were found dead in a pickup truck on Viking Drive this afternoon in what appeared to be a murder/suicide.
Apparently family members had been looking for the teenagers all day. A family member found them at the west end of Viking Drive, just off Benton Road.
No more details are available, but officials said they didn't suspect involvement from any outside parties.

Deanna Candler to announce for District D council seat tonight

Blogger/student Deanna Candler will formalize her plans to run for Shreveport City Council District D tonight at 6PM.
She published an invitation on her blog:
If you live in District D go out and meet her tonight at 6 at Cantina Laredo on Youree Drive. All are welcome and refreshments will be served!

Our Lady of Fatima, High Church Baptist

This is the email I recieved:

Today begins the ninth of the apparition of the Virgin of Fatima : When you receive the email say a Hail Mary and ask for a special favour
"Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.
(your request)
Please do not break the Novena, send it to 12 people you think deserve justice, peace, love, health, prosperity and truth.

Okay, that's nice, I have nothing against a Novena. The prayer is wrong, there is a prescribed prayer for each day to be followed by three Hail Marys, three Our Fathers and three Glory be's.

The only thing that puzzles me is why this email is forwarded to me by someone who is a dyed in the wool Baptist and always has been?

Holocaust survivor Rose Van Thyn passes away

After the Germans occupied Holland in 1942, the Nazis came to Rose Van Thyn's house and took her family away.
She was put on a railway cattle car crowded with 98 people and 2 buckets, one for drinking and one for waste. She was taken to Auschwitz where she underwent medical experiments, and later was sent to Ravensbrueck.
She survived a 'death march' near the end of the war.
Rose and her husband Louis met after the war in Amsterdam and married in 1951. They moved to Shreveport in 1956.
Rose Van Thyn was 88 years old.
You can hear her story here and here.

The Race is on in Shreveport

No, not the race for mayor and council. The race that is catching all of the attention right now isn’t even for an elected office, it is for the next police chief. Current chief Henry Whitehorn is leaving to become U. S. Marshal for the Western District, and Mayor Cedric Glover has said that he will announce Whitehorn’s replacement within the next week.
There are fourteen candidates:


1. Assistant to the Chief Ronald D. Huddleston, Assistant to the Chief
2. Cpl. Michael Carter, Investigations Division
3. Assistant Chief Wayne Smith, Support Division
4. Sgt. Willie Shaw, Administration Division
5. Cpl. Patrick McConnell, Uniform Services Division
6. Capt. David E. McDaniels, Uniform Services Division
7. Sgt. James Taliaferro, Investigations Division
8. Cpl. Kevin Strickland, Uniform Services Division
9. Sgt. Greg Jones, Administration Division
10. Cpl. Rodney Demery, Investigations Division
11. Capt. William Nelson, Support Division
12. Sgt. Tedris Smith, Investigations Division
13. Lake Charles Police Sgt. Mark A. Kraus
14. Bossier City Police Sgt. Larry Hawkins
From what I’m hearing, the likely picks are either of the assistant chiefs, Huddleston or Smith, and Sgt. Willie Shaw. Greg Jones and Rod Demery are in the mix, but somewhere behind the other three.
It’s an important decision and will have long term ramifications for the city.

Tropical Depression has formed in Caribbean

From the National Weather Service:
Our first tropical depression of the 2010 Atlantic Hurricane Season has formed near Honduras in the western Caribbean. Winds are 35 mph and movement is WNW-10 mph. The current forecast calls for a path across the Yucatan Peninsula over the weekend into the central gulf by the first of next week. Some strengthening is possible before landfall this weekend and next week into a Tropical Storm. The colored cones are uncertainty in the forecast path.

And if it does turn into a tropical storm and hit the central Gulf, what an oily mess that will be.

Firing of Vitter aide raises questions

Not much (nothing) has appeared on the local blogosphere about the firing of Senator David Vitter’s aide, Brent Furer. Furer, who had a domestic violence assault conviction in 2008 and has a history of DWI problems, has been in charge of women’s issues for the Senator.
Just a couple of questions. Why wait until election year to finally do something about this? Was Furer released only because Vitter sensed political problems on the horizon?
Vitter, who was accused in his first run for the senate by Vincent Bruno, a Republican State Committee member, of being involved with a French Quarter Hooker, confessed to a "very serious sin in my past" after his phone number was found on a Washington Madame’s phone records. Of course, Vitter claimed that the New Orleans charges were untrue. Probably just a strange coincidence.
Vitter, who teamed up with ex-senator Larry ‘toe tapping’ Craig in sponsoring the ‘defense of marriage act’ a couple of years ago, has long been a supporter of ‘traditional values’. He has quieted down somewhat on this front since he got caught, instead spending most of his time on other, more traditional conservative causes.
If Furer was a top aide to Mary Landrieu, a Democrat, Louisiana’s ‘Christian Conservatives’ would be running in circles having hissy fits. Strangely enough, they have been very quiet about Vitter and his aide.
It just comes down to one question – does personal character count in the people we elect to serve us? In Louisiana, this is generally a rhetorical question, because we all know the answer.
Although several top Republicans expressed interest in the seat, in the end they lacked to courage to stand up to the power of a sitting senator.
No doubt Vitter’s voting record appeals to many Louisianans, and Rep. Charlie Melancon, his Democratic opponent, generates very little enthusiasm.
But there are alternatives, and we will explore them in a future post.

Methodist Minister plans to run for congress

David Melville, Pastor of Fellowship Methodist Church on Barksdale Boulevard, has thrown his hat in the ring for the 4th District congressional seat. Melville, who wants to replace Dr. John Fleming, says that Fleming got caught up in partisan fighting on the health care issue rather than trying to make it a better bill.
Melville says politics has become too divisive, and that politicians are only worried about winning or losing. That's true, but it's not a new phenomenon.

I'm certain that Melville is sincere, but every politician who runs for office promises to work across the isles. That seldom happens.

Melville is married to the sister of former Governor Buddy Roemer.

LSU Family needs help

Tragedy hit the LSU soccer program last week as junior midfielder Kellie Murphy, her brother Brian Murphy and her sister Nicole Murphy were struck by a car in South Africa, where they were attending the 2010 FIFA World Cup with their family.
Opinionated Catholic has the full story and tells you how you can help.