We remember in our prayers those whom Dyllan Storm Roof killed on Wednesday while they were studying scripture and praying at Emanuel AME in Charleston, South Carolina. We remember their families and all who mourn their violent death. We pray for wisdom and courage for ourselves and for all who long for the healing of the deep wound of racism in our nation.
Rev. Clementa Carlos Pinckney, 41, pastor of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, where the shooting occurred, began preaching at 13 and was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives at 23, becoming the youngest African-American to be elected to the State Legislature.
Cynthia Hurd, 54, served as the regional manager of the St. Andrews branch of the county library, a job she loved because it brought her closer to people.
DePayne Middleton Doctor, 49, was the mother of four daughters – the youngest is in junior high school and the oldest is in college.
Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45, was a coach for the girls’ track and field team and a speech therapist at Goose Creek High School. She was on the church staff.
Tywanza Sanders, 26, had graduated from Allen University, a historically black college, as a business administration major last year and was looking for employment.
Ethel Lee Lance, 70, was a sexton at the church and had worked there for more than three decades. Her cousin, Susie Jackson, was a longtime church member and died along with her.
Susie Jackson, 87.
Rev. Daniel L. Simmons Sr., a retired pastor from another church in Charleston, attended Emanuel A.M.E. every Sunday for services and Wednesdays for bible study, according to his daughter-in-law, Arcelia Simmons of Newport News, Va.
Myra Thompson, 59, was the wife of the Rev. Anthony Thompson, vicar of Holy Trinity Reformed Episcopal Church in Charleston.