July 10, 2016 | By LYNDA STRINGER

A hastily organized prayer vigil to support local law enforcement drew hundreds to downtown Mount Pleasant Sunday night.

Members of the local minister’s union, chaplain’s association and the Mount Pleasant NAACP organized the gathering at the Bell Tower across from the Titus County Courthouse in the wake of the tragic police shootings in Dallas last week.

“Everyone has come together here today to express solidarity and support of our local law enforcement,” Rev. Lenn Deloney, president of the Mount Pleasant Minister’s Union, said following the event. “God is bigger than the problems we have.”

Deloney, pastor of Mount Olive Baptist Church, said he and his fellow pastors are committed to renewing a dialogue that will fulfill a hope of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that a man or woman is not judged by the color of their skin, but the nature of their character.

“Right now there are turbulent times in our country and we are glad to see these several hundred people coming together. That says that people care,” Deloney said.

Rev. David Anderson, pastor of Calvary Chapel and a police chaplain, said the focus of his prayer was healing and bringing the community together. He said since the tragic ambush that killed five police officers in Dallas, the major concern officers have communicated to him is that everyone is being lumped together and lines are being drawn.

“We can’t have lines being drawn in a country where we are supposed to serve one another,” Anderson said. “The idea behind this vigil was to break down some of those barriers and show that we are in this together.”

The ministers and the public prayed over and showed support for Mount Pleasant Police officers, Titus County Sheriff’s deputies and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers, a gesture they were deeply grateful for.

“DPS Capt. Michael Scullin, who was at home Thursday night when he began getting word of the shootings, said tragedies like this one affect the whole law enforcement community.

“It’s very stressful because an attack on one is an attack on us all,” Scullin said. “It puts us all on a higher stress level with our families wondering if we’re coming home.”

He said the prayer vigil showed him and his fellow troopers, officers, deputies and agents that “evil will not win.”

“Good will triumph,” Scullin said.

Mount Pleasant Police Chief Wayne Isbell called the Dallas shootings disgusting, especially because they were protecting those protesting the recent police-involved

shootings in Minnesota and Louisiana. He said the shooter “ripped out the protest message, wadded it up and threw it away.”

He thanked the community for their show of support and praised the local chaplains who volunteer countless hours to minister to the officers entrusted as the peacekeepers and protectors of the community.

Mayor Pro Tem Robert Nance said the community must not respond to the national events by pointing fingers.

“We need to come together to solve the problem. It’s time to get back to our first love, to get back to God,” Nance said. “Taking guns off the street won’t make any difference until somebody has a change of heart. We need to start respecting our neighbors, our police, our schools and each other. We don’t love when we don’t respect.”

Titus County Judge Brian Lee said prayers spoken over Mount Pleasant at every level gives him comfort.

“Christ has provided a blanket over this community, especially over our law enforcement,” Lee said.

Sheriff Tim Ingram said his heart was broken over the senseless shootings and the vigil was the beginning of the healing process.

“What a powerful statement from Rev. Kirthell Roberts to say, ‘all lives matter,’” Ingram said. “It gives me a sense of peace and strength to know that we can conquer anything that happens here when you have that kind of support.”

Lynda Stringer is a Mount Pleasant-based freelance writer and owner of Stringer Media. Contact her at Lynda.Stringer@outlook.com.