Living in Bradford insulates me a bit from what the Community of Roulette is feeling right now. I can't be there to see the tears, and to hug the necks. And to help people through this.

I went to school with both Matt and Cheri, and have fond memories of both of them.

I have not seen either of them since school, so I really don't know much about what led up to this tragedy other than rumors and various reports.

But what I do know, is that this murder-suicide has hurt more than just the two of them.

The whole community is facing this grief...

This kind of tragedy can do a few things to a community... it can tear a community apart, or it can draw it closer together.

It's hard when someone is killed. We want justice. We want to see someone pay the penalty.

Unfortunately, Matt's choices kept us from seeing that. What he chose to do was horrendous, and inexcusable.

But that leaves us in a quandry, if we end it there.

Matt's choice was not his family's choice. Let's remember that they are as shocked and horrified and grieving as Cheri's family.

Two families are missing their children... and one child is missing his parents.

Our appropriate response as a community is going to determine what happens here.

What Roulette needs to do is this:

1. We need to come along both families, and let them know that they are in our hearts and prayers... that we care about them... that we want them to find healing, and we are here for them.

2. We need to educate ourselves on issues of mental illness and domestic violence, so that we can watch for warning signs. If we see those signs, we need to step in, so that this kind of tragedy never happens again. There is hope, no matter how much we hurt. The answer is never violence.
When we suspect that our neighbor, our friend, our family is getting violent, or needs help, we need to do what we can to get them that help.

Educate Yourself.
http://www.theresnoexcuse.com
http://www.save.org