LEWISTON, Maine — As the night of Oct. 25, 2023, was unfolding, there was chaos and confusion and concern and fear and sadness. One of the first people to step in front of a television camera and share information about what was happening was Leroy Walker.
Walker was serving as an Auburn city councilor at that time and had collectively worked for the city for nearly four decades.
Leroy also had a son, Joey, who worked at Schemengees Bar & Grille—one of the two locations where a mass shooting happened on that tragic night.
Joey had tried to stop the shooter with a butcher knife before Robert Card shot and killed him.
One year later, Leroy reflected one what the past 365 days have been like.
“Your heart is broken, and you really can’t explain how your heart is broken unless you've walked in my shoes," Leroy shared. "People say it gets easier, that is absolutely not true. They get harder."
Walker has said in the past he would have a hard time hating the person responsible for the mass shootings because of his faith. One year later, he feels the same.
"I don't hate Mr. Card. I don’t hate him," Walker said. "I was absolutely right what I said that night: There was something wrong with him. We don't go out and do the things that he did, unless there's something wrong. I am so sorry this man was forgotten and pushed off to the side and then went out and did what he did"
Through pain and loss, Leroy Walker has taken solace in some of the connections he has made with people around the world that have reached out.
“I have had cards, phone calls, you have inspired us to believe in the Lord. So, if anything, Joey fed that through Jesus Christ and to me that something good has come out of it, because we all have broken hearts, and we won't see each other again until it is my day to go to heaven."
