Rex HuppkeContact ReporterChicago Tribune
There was a funeral service for Mollie Tibbetts on Sunday.
It’s possible you missed it. Her name wasn’t a trending topic on Twitter, as it was when news broke that the missing Iowa college student’s body was found, and that the man charged with killing her might have entered the country illegally.
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Sunday’s service received few, if any, tweets from high-ranking politicians or big-time pundits. It wasn’t a banner headline on the websites of major news organizations.
So I thought you should know a little about the service.
It was held in the gym at Brooklyn-Guernsey-Malcom High School in Brooklyn, Iowa. According to reports in Iowa newspapers, there were more than 1,200 people there, with more watching the service on a live feed outside the gym.
The young woman’s father, Rob Tibbetts, stood before the mourners and said: “Mollie is nobody’s victim. Mollie’s my hero.”
He continued: “And, today it’s time to turn the page. We’re at the end of a long ordeal, but now we need to turn toward life. We need to heal — this community needs to heal, our family needs to heal, but the problem with that is the person best equipped to help us through this is Mollie. So, let’s try to do what Mollie would do. Let’s say what Mollie would say.”
You may not know that much about Mollie Tibbetts beyond the pictures of her that ran on television and the most generic of details: 20 years old; a rising sophomore at the University of Iowa; joyful; funny; compassionate.
A careful read of her social media presence and the words of friends and relatives sprinkled into the reams of stories written about her since she went missing July 18 provide a deeper profile.
She was, according to her father, “very spiritual” and would turn to prayer in difficult times.
She was studying psychology and was an advocate for mental health, tweeting often about self care, mental health awareness and the importance of self-love and body positivity.
She was interested in women’s health issues and supported Planned Parenthood, tweeting last October: “Reminder that defunding planned parenthood will only increase the number of unwanted pregnancies and abortions.”
A story in The Gazette — the Cedar Rapids newspaper — cited Mollie Tibbetts’ brother, Jake, imagining the intellectual paths his sister might now be following:
“Jake said he can see his sister taking full advantage of all the great minds in Heaven that she now has the opportunity to interact with. He said he can see her learning how to better communicate and touch people’s minds and hearts from Martin Luther King Jr. He said he can see Mollie discussing politics and how to unify the nation with Abraham Lincoln, getting running tips from Steve Prefontaine, an American runner who competed in the 1972 Olympics and someone Mollie looked up to. Jake said he can see his sister talking about women and their strength and determination with Harriet Tubman and gleaning tidbits of wisdom from Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dubmledore.”
Just before she disappeared, Mollie Tibbetts responded to news of President Donald Trump saying immigration is not “good for our country” by bluntly noting in a tweet: “He’s married to an immigrant.”
That may be why some family members have spoken out against those who have used Tibbetts’ killing to demonize people living in this country illegally. A cousin wrote: “It is not your right to exacerbate this grievous act by hijacking Mollie and all she believed with your racist fear-mongering.”
During the funeral, Rob Tibbetts thanked Latino people across the state who helped search for his daughter: “The Hispanic community are Iowans. They have the same values as Iowans. As far as I'm concerned, they're Iowans with better food.”
The Gazette quoted this from the Rev. Corey Close’s homily during Sunday’s service: “I see Mollie as a bright shining light, touching the lives of those who knew her.”
He asked that those in attendance follow the young woman’s lead and “rededicate yourselves to living a good life, a faithful life, a life of goodness and compassion.”
Goodness and compassion — that was the message delivered during Mollie Tibbetts’ funeral. It was a message that didn’t receive near the attention that followed news of her fate or the identity of her alleged killer.
It’s possible you didn’t even know the funeral happened.
I thought you should.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/huppke/ct-met-mollie-tibbetts-huppke-20180827-story.html
There was a funeral service for Mollie Tibbetts on Sunday.
It’s possible you missed it. Her name wasn’t a trending topic on Twitter, as it was when news broke that the missing Iowa college student’s body was found, and that the man charged with killing her might have entered the country illegally.
ADVERTISING
inRead invented by Teads
Sunday’s service received few, if any, tweets from high-ranking politicians or big-time pundits. It wasn’t a banner headline on the websites of major news organizations.
So I thought you should know a little about the service.
It was held in the gym at Brooklyn-Guernsey-Malcom High School in Brooklyn, Iowa. According to reports in Iowa newspapers, there were more than 1,200 people there, with more watching the service on a live feed outside the gym.
The young woman’s father, Rob Tibbetts, stood before the mourners and said: “Mollie is nobody’s victim. Mollie’s my hero.”
He continued: “And, today it’s time to turn the page. We’re at the end of a long ordeal, but now we need to turn toward life. We need to heal — this community needs to heal, our family needs to heal, but the problem with that is the person best equipped to help us through this is Mollie. So, let’s try to do what Mollie would do. Let’s say what Mollie would say.”
You may not know that much about Mollie Tibbetts beyond the pictures of her that ran on television and the most generic of details: 20 years old; a rising sophomore at the University of Iowa; joyful; funny; compassionate.
A careful read of her social media presence and the words of friends and relatives sprinkled into the reams of stories written about her since she went missing July 18 provide a deeper profile.
She was, according to her father, “very spiritual” and would turn to prayer in difficult times.
She was studying psychology and was an advocate for mental health, tweeting often about self care, mental health awareness and the importance of self-love and body positivity.
She was interested in women’s health issues and supported Planned Parenthood, tweeting last October: “Reminder that defunding planned parenthood will only increase the number of unwanted pregnancies and abortions.”
A story in The Gazette — the Cedar Rapids newspaper — cited Mollie Tibbetts’ brother, Jake, imagining the intellectual paths his sister might now be following:
“Jake said he can see his sister taking full advantage of all the great minds in Heaven that she now has the opportunity to interact with. He said he can see her learning how to better communicate and touch people’s minds and hearts from Martin Luther King Jr. He said he can see Mollie discussing politics and how to unify the nation with Abraham Lincoln, getting running tips from Steve Prefontaine, an American runner who competed in the 1972 Olympics and someone Mollie looked up to. Jake said he can see his sister talking about women and their strength and determination with Harriet Tubman and gleaning tidbits of wisdom from Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dubmledore.”
Just before she disappeared, Mollie Tibbetts responded to news of President Donald Trump saying immigration is not “good for our country” by bluntly noting in a tweet: “He’s married to an immigrant.”
That may be why some family members have spoken out against those who have used Tibbetts’ killing to demonize people living in this country illegally. A cousin wrote: “It is not your right to exacerbate this grievous act by hijacking Mollie and all she believed with your racist fear-mongering.”
During the funeral, Rob Tibbetts thanked Latino people across the state who helped search for his daughter: “The Hispanic community are Iowans. They have the same values as Iowans. As far as I'm concerned, they're Iowans with better food.”
The Gazette quoted this from the Rev. Corey Close’s homily during Sunday’s service: “I see Mollie as a bright shining light, touching the lives of those who knew her.”
He asked that those in attendance follow the young woman’s lead and “rededicate yourselves to living a good life, a faithful life, a life of goodness and compassion.”
Goodness and compassion — that was the message delivered during Mollie Tibbetts’ funeral. It was a message that didn’t receive near the attention that followed news of her fate or the identity of her alleged killer.
It’s possible you didn’t even know the funeral happened.
I thought you should.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/huppke/ct-met-mollie-tibbetts-huppke-20180827-story.html
