Anchorage Houseless Resources Advocacy Council Mourns Death of Jaclyn Welcome

In an email sent this morning, the Anchorage Houseless Resources Advocacy Council issued a statement mourning the recent death of Anchorage resident Jacyln Welcome.

"The Members and Allies of our Anchorage Houseless Resources Advocacy Council mourn the death of one of the most vulnerable among us and pray for her family as they confront the trauma of yet another senseless loss.

We hope and pray for the recovery of her critically injured companions as they confront their wounds physical and mental - wounds deepened by trauma and discouragement.

And we pray, difficult as it is, for the young man who took it upon himself to execute his houseless neighbors. There is no excuse for his actions, but we note that 2020 turned everyone's life upside down.

It was perhaps inevitable that our civil society would further fray and unleash our demons when confronted daily with true vs. false versions of nearly everything:

COVID's severity; the importance of shutdowns, masks, social distancing, vaccination; Trump's defeat, his call for the overthrow of the Nation's Constitutional Government; suspicious recall elections; a divisive race for Mayor; and the vociferous demands for recognition of our racial and economic inequities.

This young man made the decision to take his frustrations out on human beings he considered less worthy than himself.

No one cares if he was drunk or high or simply angry, he gave his discontent free rein to shoot-to-kill God's children. His actions reveal that he had no interest in firing warning shots to run them out of the hood - he wanted them dead.

How many more of him will we read about in the coming months? How many more Jaclyns'?

Let us pray he will be the last killer and Jaclyn the last victim. Vaya con Dios, Jaclyn. We hold you in our hearts as you go."