ROANOKE, Va. – The tragic double homicide that left two men shot and killed in a car in the parking lot still hangs heavy over ReFreshing Church. But leaders are rolling up their sleeves to make sure it never happens again.
Bishop J.L. Jackson, lead pastor and resident bishop with ReFreshing Church, said, “This is a place of refuge for families, a place of refuge for those who are single and don’t have families, so it’s important for us to be safe and secure in a space like this so when you come to get peace, you can have peace.”
The bishop spoke passionately to city officials last week during a community meeting, urging them to prioritize safety in this area.
He said, “If what we’re gonna do is gonna help y’all, I need y’all to help us too.”
Now the church plans to take action by installing new security cameras throughout the parking lot and vulnerable areas. “We’re looking at putting some here on the portico which faces most of the parking lot as well as the front side, which also gets most side of the park.”
City officials, including Roanoke City Mayor and police, are also getting involved.
“That’s why we’re talking about that partnership with the police and with the city, rather, because if we have cameras even from a high vantage point on the church, it will be able to see into McCadden Park and catch anything that may go on there as well.”
“There’s a system they have as well that would alert them downtown so they would automatically come out and assess any situations that would possibly be on the grounds.”
Mayor Cobb is helping them find solutions to keep people out of the parking lot.
“This street is the street that we’ve been talking to Mayor Cobb and he’s planning to talk to the city manager about the possibility of retiring this street. If we can retire that street, we can put gates or petitions at the ends which keep a lot of unnecessary traffic not here.”
For the church family, this effort is about more than just security. It’s about healing and rebuilding trust.