February 14, 2009

CHICAGO – The Rev. Stephen C. Biegner heard the Feb. 12 crash that claimed 50 lives when a commuter airplane plunged into a nearby home in suburban Buffalo, N.Y.

"I got over there as fast as possible and started praying," said Biegner, a pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Clarence Center, only a few doors down from the fiery site.

Many of the firefighters and other rescue workers also rushing to the scene attend Zion, a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).

"I saw a lot first responders being the hands of God," Biegner said. "They put themselves in harm's way. They focused on how to help and how to get people out."

The plane slammed into the home nose first and exploded into a fireball, killing everyone on board. Despite the intense heat, firefighters contained the blaze to the one property.

Meanwhile, the Rev. Randy P. Milleville, Zion's lead pastor, comforted the two survivors who had been inside the home at 10:15 p.m., when the plane burst through the roof. Douglas C. Wielinski, a 61-year-old engineer, died in his home.

His wife Karen, 57, and daughter Jill, 22, escaped the house after the crash. Mother and daughter were treated for minor injuries at a nearby hospital and released.

"The people who live there have no church home and Zion is reaching out to them," the Rev. Marie C. Jerge, bishop, Upstate New York Synod, said in a statement.

For the next 24 hours, Biegner and Milleville slept little. They hustled from the crash site to the fire hall providing support, and to Zion to coordinate care.

The morning after the tragedy, Lutherans and others in the community bought food to the fire hall for the rescue workers. A mother and daughter delivered heart-shaped cookies in a show of support and gratitude.

"I've never seen so much food show up at a site in my life," Biegner said. "There were a lot of hugs and tears. I saw God's presence in the midst of a horrific tragedy."

The Rev. Eric Olaf Olsen, pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Buffalo, soon joined the pastoral outreach at the fire hall. He said the firefighters were somber and quiet as they returned from the disaster scene.

"It takes a considerable toll in the firefighters," Olsen said. "No amount of training really prepares you to see the things they saw."

Olsen headed to the wreckage site around noon. As he prayed, he breathed in the pungent burning smell from the home, where smoke still billowed.

"I wanted to be there when they removed the human remains to say a blessing," Olsen said. "I know God was with those people on the plane and able to shepherd them to a place of peace and mercy. I pray for their families. This is a crushing time and will be for many days ahead."

This was not Olsen's first time responding to a deadly disaster. During the 9/11 terrorist attacks, he served as chaplain to Staten Island's Rescue 5, which lost 11 firefighters.

Continental Connection Flight 3407 took off from Newark en route to Buffalo about an hour before the Feb. 12 tragedy. Investigators working to pinpoint a cause said that the pilots noted "significant ice buildup" moments before the plane hurtled from the sky.

Families and friends waiting for the plane to land six miles away at the Buffalo airport were taken to a senior citizens center in the nearby suburb of Cheektowaga. A few miles away in Williamsville, Kathy Johnston headed home to wait for her husband, unaware that his plane had crashed, according to one of her pastors.

Johnston had spent the evening consoling the family of an elderly woman from her congregation who died. Her death was not related to the plane crash. After Johnston left, the family heard about the plane crash and suspected it was her husband's flight. They called her, broke the news and then went to her home to offer solace, the pastor said.

Kevin Johnston was returning from a business trip when he died, according to news reports. He attended worship with his wife and three daughters, members of St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church, Williamsville, led by the Rev. Wendy Buckley and the Rev. Timothy G. Madsen, co-pastors.

Early Valentine's Day, the community packed the church for a prayer service in remembrance of Johnston and the other victims. Madsen delivered a heartfelt message to the mourners.

"When we put our arms around each other and hold each other, we find God," he said.

ELCA News Service