ROANOKE, Va. (WRIC) — It’s been exactly one week since WDBJ journalists Alison Parker and Adam Ward were gunned down during a live broadcast near Smith Mountain Lake.
WDBJ’s reporter and photographer were shot and killed at the hands of a former colleague on Wednesday, August 26.
Adam Ward has now been laid to rest. Alison Parker will have a private memorial service.
Mourners packed Roanoke’s First Baptist Church Tuesday to remember Ward at his funeral. Ward’s brother and sister spoke on the family’s behalf.
Jay Ward told mourners Tuesday at First Baptist Church in Roanoke that while Adam was the little brother, “we always looked up to him.” He says that when they were growing up, dodgeball consisted of putting Adam in the middle of the hallway and hitting him from both sides.
His sister, Sarah Crowder, says Adam “was a good sport.” She says that while his death has been devastating for the family, there have been more laughs than tears about their brother’s memory.
This morning, Alison Parker’s alma mater James Madison University remembered the life of the 2012 graduate with a vigil for her on The Quad at 6:45 a.m., around the time the gunman opened fire last Wednesday.
8News also held a moment of silence for the two slain journalists around 6:45 this morning.
This weekend, Liberty University will honor both Parker and Ward with decals on their helmets. The stickers have the #7 for WDBJ7, teal, which was Parker’s favorite color and maroon for Ward’s alma mater, Virginia Tech. VT has already announced similar plans with their own stickers.
The only survivor in last week’s tragic shooting, Vicki Gardner, continues to improve. Gardner underwent several surgeries after being shot and put in a medically induced coma. She has since woken up. She’s looking at about three months of recovery.
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