The tragic death of Thomas Naramore last Friday coupled with other tragedies in the community have prompted St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 228 Spring St., to host a nondenominational Community Service of Hope and Healing today at 6 p.m.
The 18-month-old boy, the son of Division 2 Garland County Circuit Court Judge Wade Naramore, died of "excessive heat" after being left for an undetermined period of time in a car last Friday. The 911 call, which authorities have declined to release during the investigation, was made by Judge Naramore.
The Rev. C.B. Baker, who officiated at the Naramores' wedding five years ago and who conducted the funeral service for his father, Ron, in June, wrote a guest column for The Sentinel-Record today addressing the tragedy and the "ugly responses," particularly on social media, that followed in the wake of Thomas Naramore's death.
Sally Carder, the retired president of National Park College who is a member at St. Luke's, said Wednesday that today's service will serve as a way to heal a number of wounds that have opened in the community.
"The tragedy and the responses I have addressed here have caused a great deal of pain in our community. We at St. Luke's want to attempt to help with the healing process," Carder said.
"It is nondenominational. It is a community event," Carder said.
While the service is being offered in the wake of the Naramore tragedy, Carder said it is not the sole event that prompted today's service, which is a way to "bring our community together, to show that we are strong, to show that we are forgiving, to show that we are a strong people."
"We've had so many tragedies in our area for some time. We're not going to mention specifically any one. There were so many community leaders who felt like it was just time to bring our community together and offer them an opportunity for healing," Carder said.
Local on 07/30/2015