26 LIVES LOST:
Victims of the senseless slaughter represented a cross section of the community
SUTHERLAND SPRINGS — One teen dreamed of working as a nurse in a neonatal intensive care unit. Another woman had visited the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs for the first time.
A recently retired couple from Pennsylvania was there, and a pregnant mother of five.
They were among the 26 churchgoers slaughtered Sunday morning when Devin Patrick Kelley of New Braunfels walked into the church and sprayed the congregation with more than 450 rounds of ammunition.
The 26-year-old triggerman fled and later killed himself after being shot by a rifle-wielding neighbor, leaving a grief-
stricken community to mourn and try to process a crime that continues to confound and dismay residents across Texas and beyond.
On Wednesday, authorities formally identified the victims, many of whom threw themselves in front of their children or friends to try to protect them from the bullets.
They represent a cross section of this small rural town 35 miles southeast of San Antonio — moms, dads, grandparents, children, cousins and friends, ranging in age from 1 to 77, and including an unborn child, according to details culled from interviews, media reports and law enforcement.
The Holcombe family
Sunday’s shooting claimed the lives of nine members — three generations — of the Holcombe family.
John Bryan Holcombe, 60, an associate pastor at First Baptist, died alongside his wife, Karla, 58; his son, Marc Daniel “Danny” Holcombe, 36, a mechanic; and his 1-year-old granddaughter, Noah Holcombe.
Crystal Marie Holcombe, 36, the pregnant wife of son John Holcombe, also perished in the attack, as did Crystal’s unborn baby and her two daughters, Emily Rose Hill and Megan Gail Hill, and her son, Gregory Lynn Hill. John Holcombe survived.
Haley Krueger
Sixteen-year-old Haley Krueger had dreams of becoming a nurse in a neonatal intensive care unit, a friend said.
“She just loved being around babies,” said Alison Gould, who had been best friends with Krueger for nearly two years. “She was always wanting to be around babies.”
Haley attended LaVernia High School about six miles from Sutherland Springs, and always loved to go to the First Baptist church. Being in church made Haley feel closer to her father, who died years earlier, Gould said.
“She said she feels closer to her dad when she’s here,” she said.
Tara Elyse McNulty
Tara Elyse McNulty, a 33-yearold mother of two, had worked at the Aumont Saloon in Seguin, her boss wrote.
“Tara Elyse McNulty was an amazing person, co-worker, employee but most of all a great friend,” Kevin Koenen, the bar’s owner, wrote in a Facebook post.
His saloon is holding a memorial for McNulty on Sunday.
A native of of Sutherland Springs, McNulty had worked in Louisiana as a Realtor before returning to the small South Texas town two years ago.
McNulty’s children, a 15-yearold daughter, and a 12-year-old son, were wounded in the attack.
Robert and Shani Corrigan
Robert and Shani Corrigan, both 51, moved to the Sutherland Springs area after Robert retired from the U.S. Air Force in 2015.
They joined the First Baptist Church that year, and held a memorial service there after the death of their 25-year-old son, Forrest Corrigan, less than a year ago.
Both 51 and from Michigan, the couple married after graduating from high school. After retiring from the military as a chief master sergeant, he began working for WellMed Medical Management in Texas. He was described as a man bonded to his family, community and service.
The couple is survived by two sons, both of whom are on active duty in the Air Force.
Scott and Karen Marshall
Scott and Karen Marshall, both 56, had recently retired to La Vernia from Pennsylvania and were trying out area churches. Sunday was their first visit to First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs.
Karen had just finished an assignment at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. Scott, who retired from the Air Force, was working as a civilian contractor and mechanic at Lackland Air Force Base.
Joann Ward, Brooke Ward, Emily Garcia
Joann L. Ward, 30, died trying to protect her four children.
Ward pushed her children down and tried to cover them with her body, but one daughter, Brooke Ward, died with her at the church. Another daughter, Emily Garcia, 7, died later at the hospital. Ryland Ward, 5, was shot four times but remained hospitalized Wednesday. Rihanna, 9, narrowly escaped serious injury after being pushed to the floor by her mother, though a bullet ricocheted off her glasses, a relative said.
Joann liked riding horses and always wore her favorite cowboy boots, usually with a pair of ripped jeans, relatives said.
She also loved her two dogs: a black Great Dane, Zena, and a yellow Labrador retriever, Bubbles. Therese and Ricardo Rodriguez
Therese Sagan Rodriguez, 66, and Ricardo Cardona Rodriguez, 64, were longtime members of the church. Ricardo had a habit of wearing a black cowboy hat and sported a thick handlebar mustache, and was real “country,” his daughter told CNN.
The couple liked gardening, and had been married for 11 years.
Annabelle Renae Pomeroy
Annabelle Renae Pomeroy, 14, known as Belle, was the daughter of First Baptist Pastor Frank Pomeroy and his wife, Sherri Pomeroy. Belle was attending church Sunday morning, though her parents were out of town. Her father told reporters she as “one very beautiful, special child.”
Peggy Lynn Warden
Peggy Lynn Warden, 56, of La Vernia, died after stepping in front of her grandson, Zachary Logan Poston, to try and shield him from gunfire, said Korri Scheel Stevens, Warden’s sister-in-law. Zachary suffered multiple gunshot wounds, but survived.
Warden volunteered at the church and taught Sunday school, Stevens said in a text message Wednesday. She had recently taken a year off to care for her husband, Christopher Warden, who died at age 59 in July from lung cancer. They were married 39 years.
“(Peggy) just started going back to church a month ago,” Stevens said. “The kids were so happy to have her back. She was very loved!”
Keith Allen Braden
Keith Allen Braden, 62, worked at a grocery store and attended the First Baptist Church regularly, his brother said. His wife, Debbie, survived after being shot three times.
Dennis and Sara Johnson
Dennis Neil Johnson Sr., 77, and his wife, Sara Johnson, 68, had been married for 44 years and were members of the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs for 11 years, according to a GoFundMe page set up to assist the family with expenses. They had previously attended a Baptist church in nearby Floresville.
Dennis Johnson had served as a church elder and was a veteran of the U.S. Navy Reserves — where he had served as a Seabee in Operation Desert Shield — and the Army National Guard. He later joined the American Legion, a patriotic veterans association devoted to serving the community and fellow service members.
Sara Johnson had volunteered in church nurseries for more than 30 years. She worked in the Wilson County Tax Office for more than 10 years and at a Floresville business, Pfeil’s Home and Garden.
Lula Woicinski
One of the oldest parishioners to die, Lula Woicinski, 71, was the grandmother of Danielle Shields, the wife of the gunman. She was an avid member of the church.
Shields married Kelley in 2014, but the family had been having a “domestic dispute” at the time of the shooting, law enforcement said. Kelley had sent threatening messages to Shields’ mother.
On Facebook, a niece wrote that Woicinski would be “greatly missed.”
“I don’t think there was ever a time I saw her where she didn’t have a smile on her face and a crazy fun tactic up her sleeve,” wrote Charity Sales.