To the editor:

Here is a huge high five, thumbs up, and hats off to all the organizations who assisted in the incident in Marshall Wednesday evening (April 17).

The suspect in this incident lived on the street right across from the YMCA. Families nearby were asked to evacuate. The YMCA was designated as a “shelter-in-place” and stayed open until around midnight when it was safe for people to go home.

By 6 p.m., the Red Cross had two volunteers at the YMCA, and they came with food, diapers, and teddy bears for small children. What they were able to do certainly helped make a difficult situation more comfortable. These volunteers also stayed until midnight. Also, thank you to the fire department for supplying cots and blankets.

I have been guilty of only thinking of what the Red Cross does during tragedies. Now we saw them in action right here in Marshall. Last but not least, we should all be proud and grateful for how law enforcement handled this situation and ensured no one got hurt.

Thank you to all who helped.

Sue Swanson

Marshall