I was sent to the home shortly after the death to comfort a family I had never met. The case sheet read: young, male, black, single, Baptist, terminal cancer. • Me enviaron a la casa poco después de la muerte para consolar a una familia que yo no conocía. La ficha de datos decía: joven, hombre, negro, soltero, bautista, cáncer terminal.
As violence increases, chaplain calls for increase in spiritual support
For the Rev. Howard Dotson, the decision to become a chaplain and crime victims’ advocate began when two young men he was talking with were gunned down within a half hour of his meeting. The two were on a street corner raising money for a friend who had been shot and killed two days before. Dotson says the two wanted to make a stand against gun violence and honor a fallen friend before becoming victims themselves.