Funeral held for Christina Green, 9-year-old victim of Tucson shooting
The U.S. flag that flew atop the World Trade Center is displayed at the service for Christina Taylor Green, who was born on Sept. 11, 2001. ‘I felt I had to be here to pay my respects,’ says a mourner outside the church.
Seema Mehta and Michael Muskal
Los Angeles Times
1/13/2011
Less than a week after the deadly mass shooting that left six dead and 13 injured, Tucson began to bury the dead on Thursday.
The first funeral from Saturday’s shooting was for the youngest victim, Christina Taylor Green, a 9-year-old girl who was born on Sept. 11, 2001, the day of the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil.
The U.S. flag that flew atop the World Trade Center was displayed at the funeral, linking the two tragedies that served as parentheses enclosing the brief span of the child who has become a symbol of how violence can shatter a life.
Hundreds of mourners lined the roadway leading to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church, where the funeral began at 1 p.m. MST. Many wore white and carried a single rose.
“I felt I had to be here to pay my respects,” said David Johnson, 38, of Phoenix. “It was something I felt really strongly about. It hits really close to home.”
According to the program, Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas led the service, a Mass of resurrection. Readings included Psalm 23 and John 14:1-6.
The University of Arizona choir performed as did a piper, who played “Amazing Grace.”…
…Christina, the daughter of a Dodgers baseball scout and the granddaughter of noted former baseball manager Dallas Green, sang in her church choir and was an athlete. She loved dancing, gymnastics and swimming, and wanted to be the first woman to play major league baseball, President Obama said Wednesday in his tribute to her and the other victims and heroes of Saturday.
A friend took Christina, who had been elected to her class council, to the Safeway shopping plaza to meet Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Christina wanted to talk about politics with the lawmaker, who was meeting with constituents…
…Christina will be buried in a red oak casket made by Trappist monks from Peosta, Iowa. The New Melleray Abbey has been making caskets since 1999, and donates caskets for families who have lost children…
Read the complete article at the Los Angeles Times.
H/T and video American Power.
