Vigil for Dr. Tiller in Virginia Beach
Vigil for slain abortion doctor held in Va. Beach VIRGINIA BEACH A group of abortion rights supporters gathered in Virginia Beach on Sunday evening for a memorial for Dr. George Tiller, the abortion provider shot and killed last month inside his church in Wichita, Kan. “Not everyone in my church sees eye to eye on reproductive freedom,” said Jenna Randall of Virginia Beach, the organizer. “But one thing we all can agree on is no one should ever have to be gunned down inside what is supposed to be a sanctuary.” Tiller’s Kansas clinic was one of the few in the nation that performed abortions after the 21st week of pregnancy, when a fetus is considered viable. Police arrested the suspected shooter, Scott Roeder, 51, on a charge of first-degree murder. Sunday’s vigil, with 15 people in attendance, was held at Lynnhaven Colony Congregational Church. It was among a number of similar vigils in different states. People at the memorial described Tiller as a doctor who showed compassion toward women who wanted their children, but made a painful choice to have an abortion because their babies would have suffered or been stillborn. His clinic offered funeral services after an abortion. Randall said she previously worked at a fund in Philadelphia that raised money for women who needed abortions. One of the few cases referred to Tiller’s clinic, she said, was that of a 14-year-old girl who had been raped by her uncle, was 24 weeks pregnant, had been kicked out of her house and was suicidal. Anne Rawley of Chesapeake, a retired Navy nurse, said it is complicated to perform late-term abortion and remembered women who got abortions before it became legal. "To lose someone who's qualified to do that, it scares me, it scares me so much," she said. The Rev. Valerie Coe Lowder, the church pastor, prayed for Tiller’s family, his church and for Roeder and his family. “Surround those who have been shaken by tragedy with a sense of your present love,” she said in a prayer before the group. Roeder, in a telephone interview from jail[1] with The Associated Press, said more violence would come. He did not elaborate, the AP reported Sunday. "I know there are many other similar events planned around the country as long as abortion remains legal," Roeder said. Most anti-abortion groups denounced the slaying of Tiller. Patrick Wilson, (757) 446-2957, patrick.wilson@pilotonline.com
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