Community mourns stabbing death of pastor

almost 3 years in Jamaica Observer

PETERSFIELD, Westmoreland - Residents of this community were yesterday mourning the fatal stabbing of 45-year-old Pastor Garnett Foster.
The pastor's son has since been taken into police custody for questioning.
Verona Foster, mother of the deceased, said her son was pastor of the Church of God Mountain Assembly, and was also an outstanding community activist. She said about 5:40 yesterday morning she was awakened by her grandson who informed her in a phone call that his father was hurt.
She said that as she was about to set out for her son's house, not far away in the community, when she saw him walking towards her. The bereaved mother told the Jamaica Observer that while clutching a neck wound, his blood-drenched son complained that he had been stabbed. Shortly after, he collapsed and was rushed to hospital where he died while undergoing treatment.
A large group of residents later gathered at the pastor's house, where he had been conducting online classes for the children in the community since the COVID-19 outbreak. Among the gathering was taxi operator Christopher Jones, who transported the injured clergyman to hospital.
"... I was running taxi when Garnett's mother called me and told me her son was stabbed. When me rush down there I saw him lean up on his mother's feet. I rushed him to the hospital, but he lost a lot of blood and I felt it would be difficult for him to make it," Jones said.
"I always see these things on television and me never know this would reach our little community because this is a place where everybody look out for each other."
He said that the clergyman had volunteered to have online classes for all interested children in community at his home. "These desks you can see, that is where Garnett takes care of all our children when we gone to work," said Jones. "This is a big loss... we don't know. This is a big loss, the whole community is shaken up, brother. This can't happen to Garnett. He is like God to the community and they get rid of him. This very sad," said Jones.
Errol Heaven, another community member, spoke glowingly of the clergyman's community activism.
"It is really sad to hear such a news that Minister Foster gone. This young man was useful to the community. No one was looking to see or hear anything like this about this young man. He was very humble. I am grieving, I [am] nervous; nobody has been eating from morning. I watch Minister Foster with the young guys that he took around, especially on Saturday mornings, to the playing field. He tried to groom them, he tried to train them," Heaven explained.
"Words can't explain how I feel. Garnett was a good boy. A good man in the community. He was good to me, his siblings, his children. He was good to everybody in the community," Foster's grief-stricken mother said.

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