After her husband was killed by a sniper in Iraq, Hannah Clark found comfort sitting on her bed at night, reading from the Book of Psalms.
After their son’s death in a bombing in Afghanistan, Grace and Michael W. Washington sought solace through art and the knowledge of their son’s salvation.
And since their son died in a military helicopter crash, Pat and Bud Allison have prayed for the strength to get through each day.
A war widow, two mothers and two fathers: All five Pierce County residents say the faith they celebrate on Christianity’s most sacred holiday gives them strength for now and hope for eternity.
The Easter message of life after death can be a saving grace for military families who have lost loved ones suddenly, said Col. Ken Hegtvedt, chaplain with I Corps at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
“To all of those who are of the Christian faith, it is absolutely essential in terms of giving hope,” Hegtvedt said. “Faith in that person (Jesus Christ) that offers life beyond this life is what anchors their hope.”
In Clark’s case, her faith helped her take a chance, fall in love again and start a new life with a new husband.
“It is a new chapter,” she said. “It is almost like a new beginning.”
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