From the families: “Thank you!!”

Thank You For Your Presence

We would like to express our deepest gratitude to all the beautiful people who worked determinedly to help ensure that our beloved Gabriel, KTJ, Jeremiah and Joshua could make it back home safely.

On Saturday, February 2, Javi received a call from his brother Gabriel, a few minutes after surviving the gun battle in the hotel. Gabe’s last words before his phone went dead were: “it’s starting to get dark…I don’t know if we’ll make it out if we’re still here when night falls.”

Their last few days in Chad were some of the scariest days our families have ever lived. Those days also had the potential of being as dark as a night in Chad. However, whatever darkness existed was overpowered by the Light of your presence.

You brought us hope and strength with every strategic action you took up to make sure their evacuation became a top priority for the authorities involved. Every phone call to the Embassy, State Department and Congress; every call to the media; every entry on the blog; every e-mail to coordinate the next plan of action, conveyed a prevailing sense of hope and strength.

Most important of all, it was all your prayers and positive thoughts, or more appropriately said, your love that served as our companion as we journeyed the fearful terrain of uncertainty.

The most common message entered on the blog was “we are with you”. Your presence is the greatest gift we could ever receive. For this we will carry you in our hearts forever.

Sincerely,
Families of KTJ, Gabriel, Joshua and Jeremiah.