ROANOKE, Va. – Despite the pain of losing a nephew to gun violence, the uncle of Khireem Porter drove from Radford to Northwest Roanoke with family to grieve and begin healing.
His 35-year-old nephew, Khireem Jerome Porter, was one of two men found shot and killed inside a car outside ReFreshing Church early Sunday morning.
Khireem’s cousin from Maryland, Pastor Brad, recalled the last time he saw him.
“One of the first people I talked to when I came home was Khireem, and I put him in the car with me, and we talked, and we talked about past, present and future,” Pastor Brad said. “Never in my life did I think we’d be in this place.”
A gathering inside the church Wednesday night focused on support and listening. The family met with Roanoke City Police, their reset team, the community group FEDUP, Mayor Joe Cobb, and licensed counselors who offered help, answered questions, and talked with families and neighbors.
Lieutenant William Drake of the Roanoke City Police Criminal Investigation Unit clarified the timeline of the shooting.
“It happened on Saturday, so it did not happen in the early mornings of Sunday, and so far, there’s nothing that shows it was targeted to the church at all,” Drake said.
Bishop J.L. Jackson, lead pastor and resident bishop of ReFreshing Church, emphasized the importance of community strength.
“It’s important for us, especially since the incident took place on our grounds, that we come together to let them know that the church is still strong, our community is still strong, our neighborhood is still strong and we can be peace one for another,” Jackson said.
Uncle of Khireem Porter expressed the collective grief of the family.
“This is all from the heart, and it hurts bad, you know it hurts,” he said. “It’s all of us who are hurting.”
Bishop Jackson added that the murders in the church parking lot should not be seen as a reflection of the Northwest neighborhood.
“We love the people here, and we want to make an impact here to let people know that all of Northwest is not bad,” he said.