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Church shooting survivors hope new book will preserve memories 10 years later

Ten years after the tragic shooting, members of the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church still have tough days. But they are working to make sure that tragedy and those they lost are not forgotten.

A church community is still coping with a shooting that killed two of their own.

Ten years later, members of the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church are working to make sure that tragedy and those people are not forgotten.

In part, by releasing a new book.

July 27, 2008 was a day churchgoers remember vividly.

"Somebody asked me if I think about the shooting when July rolls around, and I said, I think about it every day," said Jim Hartsell.

He and Carolyn Rogers survived the shooting at the church nearly 10 years ago to the day.

It's something they'll never be able to forget.

"I had trauma therapy, and a lot of personal growth came from that for me," said Rogers.

There are still hard days, but Rogers and Hartsell don't want the hard work and perseverance of the church to go unnoticed.

That's where fellow churchgoer Karen Krogh and her camera come in.

"[I photographed] the flowers, the cards, but really it was about the people that would start to slowly kind of stream back in to the church."

Krogh captured the year after the shooting in pictures, now compiling them into a book.

They show the pain, grief, growth and accomplishments of a church body trying to heal.

Each picture tells its own story.

In one photo, Krogh said the man pictured said "I want to sit where my wife was sitting when she was shot."

She can tell you the background to each and every photo in the book.

Krogh asked Hartsell and Rogers to write essays to be included, too, about their experiences in healing.

"More things make me cry now," said Hartsell. "More things bring tears to my eyes."

The book is called "Love is the Spirit."

Those are the first four words of the church's affirmation statement said at each service.

"Love is the Spirit of this Church and service is its law. To dwell together in peace, to seek the truth in love, and to help one another. This is our great covenant."

Krogh hopes the book will give a glimpse into what its like to survive a church shooting.

She released the book Thursday, July 26, at 6 p.m. at Union Avenue Books in downtown Knoxville.

Next she hopes to put together another book made up entirely of essays from survivors of the shooting.

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