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---
description: At least 26 people were killed when a gunman opened fire on a church in a rural community in Texas
title: These Are the Victims of the Texas Church Shooting
image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0d52500f50665e23/6988e4b50a4a2251b99d0980/rts1ilwq.jpg?branch=production&amp;width=3840&amp;quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;crop=16:9
---

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# These Are the Victims of the Texas Church Shooting


by [Mahita Gajanan](/author/mahita-gajanan/), [Helen Regan](/author/helen-regan/), [Tara John](/author/tara-john/) and [Joseph Hincks](/author/joseph-hincks/)

Updated: Dec 13, 2023 12:35 AM CUTPublished: Nov 6, 2017 6:32 AM CUT

![Mourners attend a candle light vigil after a mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0d52500f50665e23/6988e4b50a4a2251b99d0980/rts1ilwq.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=3:2)

Terri and Brooke Kalinec attend a candle light vigil after a mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, Nov. 5, 2017.

Terri and Brooke Kalinec attend a candle light vigil after a mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, Nov. 5, 2017.Stringer/Reuters

by [Mahita Gajanan](/author/mahita-gajanan/), [Helen Regan](/author/helen-regan/), [Tara John](/author/tara-john/) and [Joseph Hincks](/author/joseph-hincks/)

Updated: Dec 13, 2023 12:35 AM CUTPublished: Nov 6, 2017 6:32 AM CUT

At least 26 people were killed when a gunman [opened fire](http://time.com/5010772/texas-sutherland-springs-church-shooting/ "undefined") on a church in a rural community in Texas Sunday, law enforcement officials said. The victims ranged in age from 18 months to 77 years and included at least eight members of an extended family as well as a mother and her two young daughters, family members and officials said.

The [gunman](http://time.com/5010945/devin-kelley/ "undefined"), identified by authorities as 26-year-old Devin Kelley, shot churchgoers at the [First Baptist Church](http://time.com/5010777/texas-church-shooting/ "undefined") in Sutherland Springs, a small town located in Wilson County. At least 20 others were injured in the attack and taken to local hospitals. Ten were in critical condition as of Monday.

Of the 26 people who died, 23 were found dead inside the church, while two people were found outside. One person died after being transferred to a local hospital, authorities said during a press conference Sunday.

Among those killed was the 14-year-old [daughter of First Baptist Church’s pastor](http://time.com/5010930/sutherland-springs-shooting-daughter/ "undefined") Frank Pomeroy, according to the girl’s mother Sherri Pomeroy. The couple was out of town during the shooting.

The attack, which has become one of the most deadly mass shootings in recent U.S. history, comes just a month after a shooter opened fire on a crowd at a concert in Las Vegas, killing 58 people.

The suspected Texas gunman was chased from the scene and later found dead in his vehicle from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound, officials said Monday.

## Annabelle Pomeroy, 14

Fourteen-year-old Annabelle Pomeroy was among the 26 killed in Sunday’s church attack, her father [told](http://abcnews.go.com/US/14-year-daughter-pastor-victims-texas-church-shooting/story?id=50947892 "undefined") ABC News. Frank Pomeroy is the pastor of the First Baptist Church and said he and his wife Sherri Pomeroy were out of town when the gunman opened fire on his congregation. Annabelle is his youngest daughter.

Frank Pomeroy said Annabelle “was one very beautiful, special child.”

At a news conference, Sherri Pomeroy described the church congregation as a close-knit family. **“**We ate together, we laughed together, we cried together, and we worshipped together. Now most of our church family is gone, our building is probably beyond repair and the few of us that are left behind lost tragically yesterday,” she said. “As senseless as this tragedy was, our sweet Belle would not have been able to deal with losing so much family.”

Annabelle’s uncle Scott Pomeroy posted a tribute to Facebook, saying “Heaven truly gained a real beautiful angel this morning along with many more.”

## Crystal Holcombe, Marc Daniel Holcombe, Noah Holcombe, Karla Holcombe and Bryan Holcombe

At least eight members of an extended family were killed on Sunday. Crystal Holcombe, three of her children, and her in-laws, Karla, Marc, Noah and Bryan Holcombe, were among those killed in Sunday’s church attack.


Crystal, who was eight months pregnant, died with her unborn child and three of her children, Emily, Megan and Greg, the [Washington _Post_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2017/11/05/reports-multiple-people-shot-at-texas-church/?hpid=hp%5Fhp-top-table-high%5Ftexasshooting-blurb-9pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm%5Fterm=.b26cc62a7054 "undefined") reports. Her husband, John Holcombe, survived with two of her other children.

![Crystal Holcombe, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 6, 2017.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9d26bfa3dcf2d55f/6988e4cb97cdff17826b3258/crystal-holcombe-texas-church-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp)

Crystal Holcombe, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 6, 2017. Social Media/Reuters

Bryan Holcombe, who was an associate pastor in the church, was walking up to the pulpit when Kelley opened fire. His parents, Joe and Claryce Holcombe, told the _Post_ that John was killed in the shooting along with his wife Karla.

Bryan and Karla’s 26-year-old son, Marc Daniel Holcombe, was killed with his infant daughter, Noah Holcombe.

“This is unimaginable. My father was a good man, and he loved to preach. He had a good heart,” Scott Holcombe, Bryan’s son[ told](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/05/us/church-shooting-texas.html "undefined") the New York _Times_.


Nick Uhlig, Crystal’s cousin who was not at the church when the gunman opened fire, told the Associated Press that Bryan did prison ministry and would sing and play the ukulele for prison inmates.

![Husband Bryan Holcombe and wife Karla Plain Holcombe, victims of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, are seen in this photo obtained Nov. 6, 2017.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte90bf6dd5ccb0e74/6988e4be196cf4c6de042a1f/bryan-katie-holcombe-texas-church-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp)

Husband Bryan Holcombe and wife Karla Plain Holcombe, victims of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, are seen in this photo obtained Nov. 6, 2017. Social Media/Reuters

## Joann Ward, Brooke Ward and Emily Garza

Joann Ward and her young daughters, 5-year-old Brooke Ward and 7-year-old Emily Garza, were all killed during the church massacre, family members told the [Dallas _Morning News_](https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/2017/11/05/shot-sutherland-springs-familieswait-news-wounded-loved-ones "undefined"). The girls’ uncle, Michael Ward, struggled to comprehend the tragedy. “It’s unreal at first,” he told the newspaper. “The church of all places.”

Michael Ward, 31, said he carried his wounded 5-year-old nephew Ryland Ward out of the church once the bullets stopped. The boy had been shot four times, in the stomach, groin and arm, his uncle said. He is now fighting for his life at the hospital. “They got him all cut open, from the gunshots,” Michael Ward told the _Morning News_. “I don’t think he’s going to make it.”


![Joann Ward, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 6, 2017.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt753e6b0d86c6db38/6988e4cbab6d77a4f36b083c/joann-ward-texas-church-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp)

Joann Ward, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 6, 2017. Social Media/Reuters

![Brooke Ward, 5, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this handout photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta4877a02103f53bb/6988e4e54ee262595b30fb07/brooke-ward-texas-church-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp)

Brooke Ward, 5, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this handout photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017. Social Media/Reuters

![Emily Garza, 7, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4db91c632d55fe70/6988e4e5929fad683bbee5f9/emily-garza-texas-church-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=1440&quality=75&auto=webp)

Emily Garza, 7, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017. Social Media/Reuters


## Lula Woicinski White, 71

Authorities on Monday said the gunman had sent threatening text messages to his mother-in-law in the lead-up to the massacre, and that the shooting may have been motivated by a domestic dispute. Kelly’s mother-in-law did not go to the First Baptist Church on Sunday, but his wife’s grandmother, 71-year-old Lula Woicinski White, was reportedly among the victims.

Relatives describe White as a “caring person — a God-loving person” who was “best friends” with the people at her church, [according to](http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/texas-gunman-killed-wife-grandmother-church-shooting-article-1.3615014 "undefined") the _New York Daily News_. “I miss her badly already. We texted every day. We loved each other to the moon and back,” White’s sister Mary Mishler Cleburne told the newspaper.

![Lula Woicinski White, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 6, 2017.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt214de2c47d5a9acc/6988e4e6bc6cfc6b8e3e3da5/lula-woicinski-white-texas-church-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp)

Lula Woicinski White, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 6, 2017. Social Media/Reuters


## Haley Krueger, 16

Teenager Haley Krueger was also among the victims of Sunday’s mass shooting. Charlene Marie Uhl, Krueger’s mother, [told](http://edition.cnn.com/2017/11/06/us/texas-church-shooting-victims-list/index.html "undefined") CNN her daughter had helped prepare breakfast that morning at the church.

“She was a vibrant 16-year-old that loved life,” Uhl said, adding that Krueger loved babies and had planned to become a nurse at a neonatal clinic.

## Karen Marshall and R. Scott Marshall

A deeply religious couple who met while in the military were among those who died at the First Baptist Church.

R. Scott Marshall, 56, and Karen Marshall, 57, met while serving at North Carolina’s Seymour Johnson Air Force Base more than 32 years ago, R. Scott’s sister Holly Hannum [told](http://people.com/crime/texas-church-mass-shooting-victims-names-photos/ "undefined") _People_.

“They lasted,” Hannum said. “They had kids, they traveled — they had a love that lasted over time.”

She continued: “The one thing I am holding on to is the fact that they were Christians, in the Lord’s house, worshipping him. They loved each other and died together.”


![Husband R. Scott Marshall and wife Karen Marshall, victims of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, are seen in this handout photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0f4f132f72344d5f/6988e4e7656a3fd3e1bd260e/r-scott-marshall-karen-marshall-texas-church-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp)

Husband R. Scott Marshall and wife Karen Marshall, victims of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, are seen in this handout photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017. Social Media/Reuters

## Richard Rodríguez and Theresa Rodríguez

Richard Rodríguez, 64, and his 66-year old wife Theresa Rodríguez, were “just amazing people” who enjoyed gardening and were deeply involved in their church. That is according to Richard’s daughter, Regina Amador, who [spoke with](http://people.com/crime/texas-church-mass-shooting-victims-names-photos/ "undefined") _People_ while surrounded by members of her extended family.

“We’ve just been sitting around a table, reminiscing, looking at pictures of them. I can’t believe this is happening, but it’s happening,” Amador said.


## Robert Corrigan and Shani Corrigan

Air Force Chief Master Sergeant Robert Corrigan “was everything his killer was not.” So runs the headline of a tribute to the retired airman and his wife Shani Corrigan on veterans’ news site Task & Purpose.

Citing the Clare County, Michigan, director of veterans’ services, Task & Purpose [reports](http://taskandpurpose.com/texas-shooting-air-force-robert-corrigan/ "undefined") that the Corrigans were high-school sweethearts there before Robert joined the Air Force in 1985\. He served for three decades — rising up the ranks and earning the admiration of his peers — before retiring to Texas in 2015.

“Chief Corrigan was one of those few leaders who really got to know his people,” Bethany Keirans, a veteran Air Force staff sergeant, told Task & Purpose. “He’d remember exactly what his airmen and NCOs were going through; he’d stop by your unit and ask, ‘Hey, how’s it going, how’s your kid?’ He cared about our personal lives and not just our professional lives.”


The couple is survived by two sons. Both are on active-duty.

![Wife Shani Corrigan and husband Robert Corrigan, victims of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, are seen in this handout photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb42b628a3b044bb4/6988e4e44ee262b56d30faff/robert-shani-corrigan-texas-church-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp)

Wife Shani Corrigan and husband Robert Corrigan, victims of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, are seen in this handout photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017. Social Media/Reuters

## Tara McNulty, 33

Tara McNulty was a 33-year-old single mother who was remembered for how deeply she loved her children, her friends told the [Washington _Post_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/national/lives-of-texas-church-shooting-victims/?utm%5Fterm=.41a957887710 "undefined"). McNulty was killed in the church shooting, and her two children were wounded, according to the Austin _American-Statesman_. “It rips your heart out of your chest,” McNulty’s best friend Amber Maricle told the _Post_. “She was like my soul sister. We could literally finish each other’s sentences.”

![Tara Elyse McNulty, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3351cc0f6c850416/6988e4e50a4a228b719d09cb/tara-elyse-mcnulty-texas-church-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp)

Tara Elyse McNulty, a victim of the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, is seen in this photo obtained Nov. 7, 2017. Social Media/Reuters


## Dennis Johnson and Sara Johnson

Dennis Johnson, 77, and Sara Johnson, 68, were killed in the church massacre. Their family confirmed their deaths to the Washington _Post_ but declined to comment further.

_This post will be updated as more victims are identified._

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