On April 19, 1995 at 9:02 am, the lives of 168 innocent men, women and children were inhumanely taken from this Earth by the gutless acts of pure hate and terror; not to mention the more than 600 others injured and scores tramatized by these events.
On this day I was at work as a 19 year old in Marion, Kansas. I was employed by Marion Hometown Foods. I learned of the events of this tragedy over my lunch break and was forever changed. A few days before the events transpired in Oklahoma City, the Ryder truck used in the bombing was parked in our parking lot. Terry Nichols purchased some oranges and sent a fax from our fax machine. He was a frequent customer of our grocery store and worked as a farm hand at a rural Marion farm. Terry Nichols lived in Herington, Kansas a mere 28 miles from Marion. He seemed like a typical resident in rural Kansas; quiet and somewhat reclusive.
Seeing that Ryder truck parked in our parking lot didn't really concern me at the time, but it did seem a bit odd for it to be parked there. How many moving trucks have you seen parked in grocery store parking lots in small rural towns? I would have to say the number would probably be very minimal. While it wasn't completely strange, it did leave an imprint in my mind. And as the events unfolded over the next several days I soon realized that I had been in the presence of pure evil and blessed that my life was protected.
On October 3, 1994 the Martin Marietta Rock Quarry north of Marion was burglarized. A drill and drill bits found in Terry Nichols' home were matched to the markings on locks at the Quarry. Taken from the Quarry were 229 sticks of tovex sausage explosive, 93 rolls of Primadet, non-electric blasting caps, and 544 electric blasting caps. No ammonium nitrate was taken. Five rolls of Primadet, non-electric blasting caps were found in Terry Nichols' home, and three more were found in Michael Fortier's home. After this occured my grandfather and dad had a discussion and felt like someone was going to cause a lot of harm somewhere. And who would have thought 6 months later this horrible incident would occur in Oklahoma City.
Things were really put into perspective when two FBI agents arrived at our grocery store later that week to interview the management at our store. That is quite nerve racking to know the FBI shows up in your small town grocery store looking like Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones from Men in Black.
This tragedy has affected so many lives and there are so many friends and aquaintances of mine that have been forever changed and to hear their stories is unbelievable. And to think that while this tragedy happened in Oklahoma, the plotting and design of this terrorist act took place less than 30 miles from where I lived and left an imprint in my mind forever.
May we never take for granted our freedoms and the life that God has given us. And may we never forget that there is a great evil known as Satan who goes around like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. If you have ever doubted that there is a Satan and a hell, then reflect on this tragedy and 9-11 and may your eyes be opened.
2 comments:
i remember hearing about an Oklahoma City explosion while i was shopping in hillsboro, ks. i had quit my marion job to get ready for our move.
as the news revealed the story.....we'd be changed.
I was working in Salt Lake City at the time. I was talking on the phone with a former co-worker from Wichita when he exclaimed "someone just blew up the Federal Building in Oklahoma City". I was dumb founded.
Unbelievable destruction and to think that the truck load of explosives sat in Marion at the grocery store on it's way to OKC.
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