We want to say a few words about our daughter Esme Louise Kenney. This tragedy has caused us all unspeakable pain and anguish. But Esme was an extremely positive, open and caring person. When we think of young people, we would hate to see this tragedy hurt people’s ability to see life in a loving, caring way.
The last few days of her life were among the most positive, with her brother and uncle in town, a good guitar lesson and a sense of accomplishment after finishing several projects at school. She felt so good and it was such a beautiful early spring day that she did an unusual thing for her: she went for a jog across from our house, which ultimately led to her demise. Finally, and we did not expect this, the community’s overwhelming response to her death has lessened our pain. From kids in her class having the courage to call us and offer their condolences and offer help in any way, to church communities (and we mean plural), to our local community where we live, to her Owl community and school community, it has helped us to remember our basic belief that most people are good at heart and are capable of random acts of kindness to offset the random acts of violence.
We are overwhelmed with the love and support we have received from family, friends and even total strangers. We are so touched and fortified and thank you all. I wish to share this outpouring of love with the other families who lost their daughters, sisters, friends to this man. Thinking of her murderer, I cannot wrap my mind around the kind of pain, hate and evil that must be in his heart to have committed such heinous acts on not just my baby but several other young girls as well. Though I cannot understand his hate and insanity, I do know that we must not meet this with our own hate. I appeal to all to instead embrace Esme’s way, which was love and kindness and positivity. In the words of St. Francis Assisi, “Lord make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith. Where there is despair, hope. Where there is sadness, joy.”
When I feared bad things happening to my Esme, this just seemed too extreme. It is something that happens in the newspaper. You know I worried about her getting hit by a car when she went out to get the mail or worried she would drown in the lake up in Canada but this ... this just seemed like such an extreme remote possibility in the spectrum of parental nightmares. I find my mind working within archetypal frames. My Esme was such a good and loving person and he so extremely sinister, it’s like a clash of magnetic forces. I can’t help but think that what happened Saturday was that such a bright light has collided with this extreme malevolent force, and I want to believe that what he actually did was not to snuff her light out but to cause an explosion of love and light that will embed a shard of goodness and kindness into all the hearts of those that remember Esme Kenney. He cannot win.
