Inside the walls of the Greater Heights Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor Curtis Bryant is trying to do more than preach the gospel, he's saving lives and families.
For more than a decade he's hosted the Batterers Intervention Program, which discusses domestic violence and self control with perpetrators who have a court order to go through his program.
“Self control is what we teach and the one person you can control in this world is yourself,” explained Bryant.
However, in late April he'll focus on the victims of domestic violence, motivated by Letitia Lane's tragic death.
“The story caught my attention with the facts; daughter is missing and then the things that ensued afterwards,” Bryant recalled.
Bryant is a close friend of Lane's stepfather.
“I think Letitia’s story has really given face and fire to the fact that something has to be done,” he said.
According to the Jean Crowe Advocacy Center, every 12 seconds, a woman is beaten by her partner, one in four women are victims of domestic violence and in Metro Nashville, on average there are 33 domestic violence cases ever single day.
While law enforcement officials have not openly discussed the domestic issue surrounding Lane, her disappearance and murder we do know days before she was reported missing her ex boyfriend showed up at her job and told her he was leaving town and wanted to take her out just one more time.
“That 'last goodbye' is one of the dangerous times. Its proven, it’s statistically shown to be one of the most dangerous times in a relationship, especially where there is intimate partner violence,” Bryant explained
Lanes life ended far too soon, Bryant hopes her story may save others. “Here’s the sad part, Jonquil. All the indicators were there,” Bryant said.
If you would like more information on Pastor Bryant's workshop called Breaking the Silence on Domestic Violence you can email greaterheightsmbc@comcast.net. It's scheduled for April, 28 at the Greater Heights Missionary Baptist Church.
