Remembering Keith Houts

I didn't find out until yesterday that the name of the officer who was recently gunned down in Montgomery was Keith Houts. The name sounded familiar, so I went searching through my Pleasant Grove High School yearbooks. Sure enough, there he was with the class of '94. He's on the same page (39) with some of my friends from that time: Chris Little (my best friend's brother), Laura Hardy (who went to my church), Paige Harwell (my gym teacher's daughter and a varsity cheerleader), Brittany Rogers (a world champion batton twirler).

What I remember of Keith is actually very little. I remember that he was a nice guy. He was on the track team. I remember that there was a girl named Lori Houts (his sister, maybe?) who was severely beaten and left for dead. Thankfully she survived, but I wonder if that's what lead him to become a police officer.

I also stumbled upon the following, which his parents placed in the yearbook for him:

"It seems as though the years have flown by and now you are in the graduating class of 1994. We want you to know how proud we are of you for the high standards you have set for yourself and for the seemingly unreachable goals that you have attained. We hope that your dreams always come true."

Needless to say, I cried my eyes out.

I won't be able to make it to the memorial service tomorrow, but if anyone in Keith's family happens to stumble upon this blog and read this, please know that my prayers and thoughts are with you all right now. Keith was a good guy, and he will be missed.