On the anniversary of last October's historic floods, the sanctuary of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church was full of people gathered for an interfaith service of remembrance. Leaders from 10 churches and synagogues took part, offering prayers, songs, and words of encouragement. The event honored First Responders from Forest Acres, Richland County, and the City of Columbia, along with community members touched by the disaster. South Carolina Public Radio’s Laura Hunsberger has the story.
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In addition to honoring first responders who worked around the clock after the October 2015 floods, the service honored the memory of Forest Acres Police Officer Greg Alia. On September 30, 2015, Greg Alia, 32, was fatally shot while responding to a call at Richland Fashion Mall in Columbia. It was the second death of an officer on the force in about 40 years, says Chief of Police Gene Sealy, and it was a huge loss to the department and the Forest Acres community.
Anniversaries are an important part of being able to recognize what we've been through, but also to be able to look forward with hope.
Sealy says the force was still grieving with the community when the October floods hit. Officers from the City of Columbia and Richland County had taken on Forest Acres shifts, allowing them to take time off to grieve and attend Alia’s funeral on October 3. The next morning, October 4, just hours after they had gathered at the police department for fellowship after the funeral, the first floor of the building was completely flooded out.
The force had to jump into action immediately to respond to the flooding in Forest Acres. They moved operations to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church for the next eight days, working around the clock. Sealy says the community provided support and encouragement by providing hot meals for the officers and the National Guard, who also set up a command center at the church.
At the Interfaith Service of Remembrance for the anniversary of the flood, leaders offered a Blessing of the First Responders. Reverend Paul Wollner of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, who organized the event, spoke about seeing the entire community come together to support each other after the flood.
"Anniversaries are an important part of being able to recognize what we’ve been through, but also to be able to look forward with hope," says Reverend Wollner. "And the one year anniversary of the flood, but also the shooting of officer Greg Alia, came so close to each other, that being able to do this this evening and include a blessing of our first responders was very important to us."