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The Times Advocate, 2007-08-01, Page 22 Times -Advocate Wednesday, August 1, 2007 Regier prayer service attended by over 700 By Nina Van Lieshout TIMES -ADVOCATE STAFF MOUNT CARMEL — More than 700 members of the Mount Carmel and area community attended the community prayer service July 25, gathering at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church to mourn 72 -year-old Bill and 73 -year-old Helene Regier, longtime residents of Mount Carmel who were found slain in their farmhouse down the street on Bronson Line July 23. Several tears and sobs were seen and heard as the parish priest Rev. Ray Lawhead spoke, remembering the Regiers as pillars of the community. "We are here because of one thing — love," said Lawhead. "We are here because of the love of two people and because of the love this community has for each other," he added. "We are a community united against crime. "We also must show love for the Regier family, because they have experi- enced a tremendous loss," said Lawhead. Vehicles packed the parking lots in the area and lined the road, as the com- munity members filled the church built to hold 600 people. The OPP continue to search for 22 -year-old Jesse Norman Imeson of Windsor, who is also wanted for the murder of 26 -year-old Carlos Rivera of LaSalle. Remembering the Regiers — More than 700 residents packed Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church July 25, mourning Mount Carmel residents Bill and Helene Regier who were found slain July 23 in their farmhouse on Bronson Line, down the street from the church. (photo/Nina Van Lieshout) Oke speaks to media EXETER — In response to the slayings last week of Bill and Helene Regier of Mount Carmel, South Huron Mayor Ken Oke held a press conference Friday after- noon at the Olde Town Hall. In a prepared statement, Oke said "this has been a very dark week in South Huron...but I think we can return the municipality of South Huron to the great place it was – a great place to live, to work and to play in." Oke took questions at the end of the statement. In response to a question about whether the police are giving enough information to the public, Oke said the police are giving out the amount of information they can and that they don't want to hurt the investiga- tion. Asked about the possibility of "vigilante action," Oke said while there is a feeling it may happen, the munici- pality is trying to keep everyone calm and the police are equipped to do the job. Oke was also asked if the trust enjoyed in the area previous to the murders will come back. He replied, "it will come back, but it will take time." Message of calm — South Huron Mayor Ken Oke reads a prepared statement in a press conference Friday afternoon at the Olde Town Hall. (photo/Pat Bolen) Reverend reads Regier statement By Nina Van Lieshout TIMES -ADVOCATE STAFF MOUNT CARMEL — Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church Rev. Ray Lawhead read a statement on behalf of Bill and Helene Regier's children, brothers and sisters July 25. The statement said, "It is with profound shock and sadness that we come before you to express our sincere appreciation and grat- itude for your support and prayers. "Bill and Helene were known as pillars of the community for their strong faith and family values. Bill was an active member of the Knights of Columbus and a huge advocate of the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church Restoration pro- ject. Helene has served with the Catholic Women's League for more than 50 years and was a past London Diocesan president. Married for nearly 52 years, they raised six children and were deeply committed to their 16 grandchildren and five great grandchildren. "No words can truly convey the loss our family is living through at this time. "Please pray with us for the protection of our community and Family statement — A statement was released on behalf of Bill and Helene Regier's family July 25 at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church by Rev. Ray Lawhead. Bill and Helene, described as pillars of the community were found slain in their farmhouse July 23.The OPP are searching for 22 -year-old Jesse Norman (meson of Windsor, who has eluded police for over a week. (photo/Nina Van Lieshout) the safety of the police force." The statement began with the ringing of the church bell for Bill and Helene Regier. Rev. Lawhead did not answer questions after the statement was read at 1:30 p.m. South Huron mayor Ken Oke comments on tragedy (Editor's note: The following is a state- ment South Huron Mayor Ken Oke made during a press conference last Friday on the recent murders of Bill and Helene Regier.) SOUTH HURON — This week has been a very dark week in South Huron. We have suffered a horrible tragedy that no municipality should ever have to experi- ence. Through a horrific act we have lost two lovely people who were parents, grandparents, great grandparents, neighbours and friends. Most of all they were a part of the South Huron family. I did not know Bill and Helene, but the people that knew them tell of how cheerfully they gave of themselves to their church, their municipality, their family and to their friends. I would like to express my deepest sympathy to the Regier family on behalf of myself, my family, my council and the South Huron community. Believe me, words just cannot express how I really feel right now. I believe the entire Municipality of South Huron is mourn- ing your loss and ours. Our thoughts and prayers are with you. Our municipality which usually experi- ences tranquility and peace was turned upside down with this horrible act, pre- sumably committed by one person. Through his actions, he stole a lot of things that we, as rural people, hold sacred. I am not sure how he got into the house, but I ask anyone, if there is a knock at your door after dark, would you not open it to see if it is family, or friends, or a person in need? Our way of life is to trust people and this feeling of trust makes us vulnerable to violent people. The good news is that there are very few people in our society, probably one in millions, that are of this nature. Of course the bad news is that there was one and he showed up in South Huron and he killed two of our residents. The further bad news is all these precau- tions might have stopped him and then again it might not have stopped him. I feel we should do as much as we can to protect ourselves, even though in some cases it might not work. This violent act has left us with a lot of emotions. It is only human to feel scared, fearful, hatred and to want revenge. Some of these emotions will get you through this ordeal, but some of these emotions might get you into trou- ble. Our biggest fear is of the unknown. We do not know where this man is hid- ing and we do not know what his future Ken Oke actions will be. I can not express to you enough to please put your trust in our police force. They are trained to carry out work such as this. Their training has been designed by professionals and instructed in peace- ful times to get the maximum results when needed. The feeling of hatred and wanting to get revenge may get you into trouble. These are adverse times in South Huron and the police have issued instructions for your safety. Please take these instructions very seriously and use caution. We need to work as a team. Keep your eyes and ears open and keep our police informed. If you see anything that is unusual or out of the norm, please call the police at 1-877-584-8477 imme- diately. If this man is in our area, we want him captured with no more loss of life. Remember the police are trained to deal with people such as this fellow. It would be unfortunate to locate him and have him escape. Worst of all we do not want to lose anyone else in South Huron in the process of capturing him. We are very fortunate to have the secu- rity of the OPP as our police force. This police force is very well trained and well respected. They are also famous world wide for their professionalism. I feel they are doing everything humanly pos- sible to capture this person. This person will be caught. Then we will have the duty to rebuild our munici- pality. We have scars and emotions that we will have to deal with. I believe the whole municipality is in mourning and each person deals with their grief a little differently. Please keep your eye on your friends and neighbors and let's all work togeth- er to get through this awful ordeal. If you have any questions, concerns, fears or suffering from anxiety as a result of this tragedy, a resource team has been set up at with the OPP. Please call the OPP station. We need to restore confi- dence in our people and regain our sense of rural security. We might have to change a few things in our living habits, but I think we can return the Municipality of South Huron to the great place it was — a great place to live, to work and to play in.