Pastor Dave Coleman checked his phone and then interrupted the Thursday morning staff meeting at Watersprings Church, “Pastor Ty and Tim, did you hear there’s a reported shooting at a Rigby school?” We had not. Rigby is a small community in Jefferson County, ID, the adjacent county north of Bonneville, where the Law Enforcement Chaplaincy of Idaho serves. I left the meeting to make some phone calls while the staff prayed. Sure enough, the early reports were that three people were shot. Three chaplains, along with canine Trixie, were dispatched to the scene, and three chaplains were dispatched to the hospital where the victims were transported.
The investigation revealed the shooter is a 12-year-old girl who lives in Idaho Falls, but attends school in Rigby. The young girl shot two other students and a custodian, then was disarmed by a teacher, and held until officers arrived. The middle school students were escorted to the nearby high school where parents were instructed to pick up their children. That’s where our chaplains went.
Senior Chaplain Christa Trinchera reported that the chaplains, especially Trixie, were well received and did an amazing job ministering at the school to students and staff. By God’s grace, the victims’ sustained non-life-threatening injuries and all three are expected to make a full recovery. The following Monday a community-wide meeting was held to answer questions and share with the community resources available to help begin the healing process. The LECI was invited to present our service and have chaplains available. A dozen chaplains attended the meeting and ministered to several people. The Rigby principle also requested chaplains, and especially Trixie, to be available when the school reopened. Chaplain Pan Inman, Trixie, and Chaplain Melissa Davis spent several days serving the children at the middle school. Please keep the victims and the Rigby community in your prayers.
Suicide is not an Option Seminar
The Strong Blue Line Ministries has a new seminar based on my book Suicide is Not an Option, Hope in Man’s Search for Meaning. The Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office in Idaho Falls is the first to host the seminar on June 24th. I hope to schedule others around the country. If you’re interested in hosting or sponsoring a seminar in your area, please contact me. On that note, I’m seeking financial support that will enable me to travel and put on seminars for free or at little cost to officers. If you would like to support this effort, you can do so through The Strong Blue Line Ministries.
One way your church, business, or organization can honor officers in your community is by hosting a seminar and/or a special dinner for officers. Many churches have special church services for officers, but few officers attend. It’s been my experience that providing a special dinner for officers and their spouses at a time other than the normal worship service time gets far more participation. The two largest seminars and special dinners I’ve done were sponsored by churches and nonprofit organizations. Contact me if you have any questions about how to host a seminar and/or set up a dinner for officers.
Cop Church
Cop Church Idaho Falls has been blessed with good participation lately. Remember, if you live in the Idaho Falls, ID or Chattanooga, TN area make it a point to attend a Cop Church service. And coming soon is Cities Cop Church in the Twin Cities area. Pastor and retired police officer Glenn Herschberger plan to launch the church on Tuesday, September 21, 2021.
Cop Church Idaho Falls is raising money to buy books and give them to LEOs in Minnesota. Copies of “Winning a Gunfight: Securing Victory Ethically, Mentally, and Tactically” will be given to LEOs at two events. The first is the Blue Life Support seminar in July and at Cities Cop Church in September. If you’d like to donate, go to the Cop Church website and click on the “Donate” button, then select “Fundraiser” from the drop-down menu.
New Book Release
My latest book A Preaching Primer: Basic Homiletics is written for pastors, preachers, and teachers of the Bible. It’s available on Amazon and at Watersprings Church.
Pray for your police.
