A church in the Wise County City of Paradise will host a vigil Tuesday night for Athena Strand, the seven year old girl who was abducted and killed last week. The event begins at 6 p.m. at First Baptist Cottondale.
"We call it a celebration of life, some call it a candlelight vigil. It's a service where different pastors speak, her teacher from school will speak," says Pastor Charles Pugh. "One of our church members is also with the K9 unit at the Sheriff's Department. He's going to be here speaking."
First Baptist Cottondale had been urging people to send letters of support to be read during the service and forwarded to Strand's family. Many were from North Texas, but Pugh says they also received notes from as far away as California, Michigan and New Jersey.
"We probably got 50 or 100 letters," he says. "Quite a few of them were even from out of state. People have just been touched."
Pugh says Strand's teacher sent one of the letters and will read it during the service.
The celebration of life will take place outside. Pugh says businesses in Wise County donated materials the church will need from the stage to lighting to coffee.
"Several people said, 'What should we do?'" he says. "I tell people you're either going to get bitter or better. You're either going to turn to the Lord and love people, or if you just get hate and fear, it'll just destroy you."
The event starts at 6 p.m. Tuesday at First Baptist Church Cottondale located at 145 Co Rd 3355 - Paradise, TX 76073.
Pugh expects the vigil to last 45 minutes to an hour.
"People will hang around an hour or two later just loving on each other, encouraging each other and maybe praying in groups together. That's what it's going to be all about," he says.
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