Charleston Church Holding Services Tomorrow

Parishioners expect a huge turnout
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jun 20, 2015 8:00 PM CDT
Charleston Church Holding Services Tomorrow
Emanuel AME Church stands in the background as a mourner visits a sidewalk memorial Saturday.   (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

A small group of parishioners was allowed inside the bullet-scarred Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal church today, getting a firsthand glimpse of the room where nine people from their congregation were slain. Cleaning crews had been at work, and, amazingly, church members announced they will hold a Sunday service. "They did a good job cleaning it up," says 75-year-old Harold Washington. "There were a few bullet holes around, but what they did, they cut them out so you don't see the actual holes." He said he expected an emotional service with a large turnout tomorrow. (It starts at 9:30am, reports CNN.)

"We're gonna have people come by that we've never seen before and will probably never see again, and that's OK," he said. "It's a church of the Lord—you don't turn nobody down." (Meanwhile, the FBI is investigating Dylann Roof's apparent manifesto.)

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