KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The plane crash near Washington, D.C. is an unfathomable tragedy for 67 families.
KSHB 41 continues to update a web page with profiles of each victim.
While Pastor Armour Stephenson III, known as AD3, is someone who is never short of words during a sermon — he needed a moment after seeing the footage.
"At first, I tried to turn away from it just because it's so painful," he said. "I'm well acquainted with that kind of tragedy."
Pastor AD3 has been in ministry for about 19 years.
He recently moved his church, City of Truth, from a temporary location at the Gem Theater in the 18th and Vine district to a permanent campus in Raytown.
The pastor's faith transformed him as a young man but life struck him first.
"I got into pastoring in 2006 after both of my parents, who are also my pastors, were killed in a plane crash," he said.
Last week, made 20 years since that deadly crash happened in Overland Park.
His parents were lead pastors of what was Parkway Baptist Church. The crash killed them, and everyone on board, instantly.
It changed Pastor AD3's life just as quickly.
However, at 20 years old, that didn't stop him from taking over his parent's church a year later.
"The life altering that takes place with a tragedy like that — it's indescribable," Pastor AD3 said. "Our story was a local story that got some national attention. This [DC plane crash] is a national story, eyes on it everywhere, from the White House to the house in the hood on the corner."
Often in grief, people don't think many people understand.
The City of Truth pastor wishes he didn't.
"Grief — the pain of grief — doesn't get smaller. I get bigger. As I've grown, I've grown into the pain, leaned into the trauma, I've gotten more mature and I've gotten better," he said.
The pastor is open about his parent's story to his church congregation. Often, reflecting on how he is able to walk in their legacy.
"Here I am (in 2005) a kid," told KSHB 41's Alyssa Jackson.
Now, the pastor said, "I'm a 40 year old man. What was once a boulder is now a pebble. It's still there but it's not as heavy as it was."
While some of the plane crash victim's families may not see it right now, he wants them to know every emotion, including anger, can surface.
"There are so many people that suffer silently with it, just really don’t know what to do with it — whether it’s a tragedy like this or another kind of tragedy. I think people just don’t know what to do with it. What I've learned about grief is if you don’t process it in a healthy way, it will still come out, but it will come out sideways," he said.
This is a journey the pastor believes every family impacted should feel able to "slow walk" for as long as they need.
"Surround themselves with people who will hold them up, not pull from them," he said. "Faucet people who will pour into them not drains."
Even 20 years later, he's hurt thinking of the moments his parents missed — their grand kids, his wedding, big life moments.
However, while he can walk in the shoes of the plane crash victim's families, he chose long ago to wear them differently.
"I want to give voice to the silent killer of grief, let them know it doesn't have to kill you. It doesn't have to keep you locked up in a dungeon. You can live. You can carry on and you don't have to die with them. You can live in their memory," he said.
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KSHB 41 reporter Alyssa Jackson covers portions of Johnson County, including Overland Park, Prairie Village and Leawood. Share your story idea with Alyssa.