Dec 17, 2016 2 min read

After being held hostage for nearly two weeks, Tierne Kopko Ewing sat in Kristin Clingerman’s office, bruises still visible on her face.

“I remember being so struck by her grace and her composure and her dignity. (Ewing) had just gone through hell, and she sat there. Her voice was strong, and she was calm and she was very collected,” said Clingerman, Washington County assistant district attorney.

Relaying the ordeal to Clingerman, Ewing’s major concern was the welfare of her parents and two children.

“That concern far outweighed any concern for herself,” Clingerman said during a vigil for Ewing Saturday at South Franklin Township park.

Ewing was shot and killed Aug. 30 by her husband, Kevin Ewing, who took his own life and was awaiting trial for holding her hostage from the end of June into July, striking her and threatening to kill her.

Suzanne Kelley, sister-in-law of Vincent “Mystro” Kelley, who was shot and killed in 2013 while trying to stop a bank robber in South Strabane Township, organized the event at the request of Tierne Ewing’s family. Kelley said several families in Washington County who lost loved ones in violent incidents support each other.

“The way we meet people is through tragedy… but in the end, we all know what each other is going through. So, I have a real, real big family of all colors. Anything you want… to keep your daughter’s name alive, I will do,” she told Annelle and Richard Kopko.

As they wiped the tears from their eyes, the Kopkos spoke of their daughter’s prowess as a softball pitcher.

“We had a lot of fun. We loved to laugh. We loved to giggle,” Annelle Kopko said. “I love her, and I always will.”