Community Reaches Out To Victim's Children
Church To Help Pay For Children's College Tuitions
POSTED: 7:55 p.m. EDT October 17, 2002
OLNEY, Md. -- Among many dreams and goals, Prem Kumar Walekar had one important hope -- to see his children succeed in life.
Those who knew him well say Walekar's faith was as solid as the church he attended.
The Rev. Peter Bath, pastor at Sligo Seventh Day Adventist Church in Takoma Park, Md., told NEWS4 Walekar had been a church member for 20 years. He said Walekar didn't speak much, but everyone knew him.
"I would describe him as a gentle man who really spoke more through what he did than necessarily through what he said," Bath said.
Two weeks ago, the 54-year-old cab driver became the sniper's third victim. Walekar stopped by an Aspen Hill, Md., gas station to fuel up his taxi cab when he was fatally shot on Thursday, Oct. 3.
Family members say he gassed up early so he could go home and enjoy the rest of the day with his family. His daughter, Andrea, says that's how he was, and that everything her father did was for his wife and his two children.
Andrea says her father's dream was to see his children get a college education, something he wasn't able to do. "He worked so hard for me and my brother. He didn't get an opportunity to finish college, so he always emphasized for me and my brother to get a good education, a good career and try to be the best we could in life," Andrea said.
But Walekar's church is going to make sure that dream becomes a reality.
It has established a trust fund to pay for Andrea and her younger brother Andrew's college education.
"A church from Kentucky called and said 'What can we do to help?' Because, in a very real way, this tragedy has touched everybody's heart in the country," Bath said.
Andrea says the family's Christian faith has no room for hatred or anger. But she fears the sniper will strike again because he doesn't know the victims and doesn't know their dreams.
"If they knew my dad -- what kind of person he was, and how hard-working he was, and his dreams and his goals -- I don't think he would've been able to [shoot]," Andrea said.
She says she is still afraid to attend evening classes at the University of Maryland, but she vows to finish her degree in business because that's what she says her father would have wanted.
The Walekar family says it's grateful for all the people who've stepped forward to help. Andrea says she has one year of college left to earn her degree.
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Those who knew him well say Walekar's faith was as solid as the church he attended.
The Rev. Peter Bath, pastor at Sligo Seventh Day Adventist Church in Takoma Park, Md., told NEWS4 Walekar had been a church member for 20 years. He said Walekar didn't speak much, but everyone knew him.
"I would describe him as a gentle man who really spoke more through what he did than necessarily through what he said," Bath said.
Two weeks ago, the 54-year-old cab driver became the sniper's third victim. Walekar stopped by an Aspen Hill, Md., gas station to fuel up his taxi cab when he was fatally shot on Thursday, Oct. 3.
Family members say he gassed up early so he could go home and enjoy the rest of the day with his family. His daughter, Andrea, says that's how he was, and that everything her father did was for his wife and his two children.
Andrea says her father's dream was to see his children get a college education, something he wasn't able to do. "He worked so hard for me and my brother. He didn't get an opportunity to finish college, so he always emphasized for me and my brother to get a good education, a good career and try to be the best we could in life," Andrea said.
But Walekar's church is going to make sure that dream becomes a reality.
It has established a trust fund to pay for Andrea and her younger brother Andrew's college education.
"A church from Kentucky called and said 'What can we do to help?' Because, in a very real way, this tragedy has touched everybody's heart in the country," Bath said.
Andrea says the family's Christian faith has no room for hatred or anger. But she fears the sniper will strike again because he doesn't know the victims and doesn't know their dreams.
"If they knew my dad -- what kind of person he was, and how hard-working he was, and his dreams and his goals -- I don't think he would've been able to [shoot]," Andrea said.
She says she is still afraid to attend evening classes at the University of Maryland, but she vows to finish her degree in business because that's what she says her father would have wanted.
The Walekar family says it's grateful for all the people who've stepped forward to help. Andrea says she has one year of college left to earn her degree. Copyright 2002 by nbc4.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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