Pastor Joel Guttormson of New Jerusalem Lutheran Church in Lovettsville on Jan. 8 memorialized the life of Margaret Anderson, a National Park Service ranger and former member of his congregation who was shot and killed on New Year’s Day while she was on duty at Mt. Rainier National Park, Wash.

Anderson, 34, a mother of two small children, and her park ranger husband, Eric, attended New Jerusalem while she was assigned to the C&O Canal National Park and he was assigned to the Antietam National Battlefield Park.

“Margaret and Eric were doing jobs that they loved, being park rangers,” Guttormson told the congregation.

A color photo of Anderson, wearing her park service uniform, was placed on the alter on Jan. 8 and members of the congregation were given envelopes to place donations for a fund that has been set up for the Anderson family.

Guttormson recalled he and his wife, Nancy, were devastated when they learned that Anderson had been killed.

“Margaret’s father is a Lutheran pastor, which gave Margaret a ‘PK’ (pastor’s kid) an instant connection to our lives and faith here at New Jerusalem.

“Nancy and I often ride our bikes on the C&O Canal trail, and we remember meeting Margaret one day. She was dressed in her park ranger uniform. When we took note of the gun on her hip, she reminded me that her job was to ‘serve and protect’.”

“When Margaret was expecting her first child, we invited her and Eric to our home to share a meal, along with two other couples who had just given birth. In the coming weeks, she would return to her father’s church to have their new baby baptized. Shortly after, we celebrated their joy in being assigned to their ‘dream jobs’ of serving together at Mr. Rainier. (Her husband was on duty at the park the day Anderson was killed).

“As a congregation, we are deeply saddened by her death,” Guttormson said. “It’s hard to imagine how those who were even closer to her will find comfort in the days ahead.

“We struggle to find meaning when doubt and evil and desperation seem to win the day. But we can take comfort in knowing that God Immanuel is with Margaret, and with all those who struggle with evil and injustice.”