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Service set for slain missionaries

By Jean Torkelson, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published December 11, 2007 at 1 p.m.
Updated December 11, 2007 at 1:43 p.m.

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A memorial service is scheduled for 10 a.m. Wednesday for Tiffany Johnson and Philip Crouse, two young missionaries slain early Sunday by a rampaging gunman.

The intent is to honor as well as mourn, said Peter Warren, co-director of the Arvada chapter of the worldwide organization called Youth With A Mission, or YWAM.

"We're inviting as many people as would like to be there," Warren said. "We want to honor Phil and Tiffany's lives."

The service is at Faith Bible Chapel, 4890 Carr St., located on the same campus as YWAM. Church and mission leaders connected with the international YWAM organization, believed to be the largest Christian mission group in the world, are expected.

YWAM has also picked up the expense of flying in Johnson's family from Minnesota, Crouse's family from Alaska, and family of the two injured missionaries, Charlie Blanch and Dan Griebenow.

Warren said three funds are being set up to honor the two slain missionaries.

The first fund is for funeral and other burial expenses incurred by the Johnson and Crouse families.

The second fund will establish a "Tiffany and Phil" scholarship to help young Christians who wish to dedicate their lives to overseas mission work. Johnson was planning to go to Japan next year, and Crouse had talked about going to Kazakhstan, Warren said.

The third fund will help ease the cost of flying in more than 20 family members of the victims.

Since the shooting, about 200 student missionaries and staffers at the Arvada chapter have been meeting at another location to begin the grief and healing process.

Police have lifted the crime scene restrictions at the Arvada chapterwhere the shootings occurred and Warren said the group will move back there today.

He said everyone in the group was offered the opportunity to go home for a while or leave the program entirely. He said, as far as he knew, all have elected to stay.

"This isn't like college kids in a dorm," Warren said. "They've spent a lot of years together. It's a family."

Contributors should make checks out to Youth With A Mission - Denver and specify which fund they would like to support. The address is 12750 W. 63rd Ave., Arvada, CO 80004.