Hundreds Turn Out For Doctor's Funeral

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Associated Press
Sunday, June 7, 2009

WICHITA, June 6 -- Hundreds of people gathered Saturday to honor slain abortion provider George Tiller, while outside the funeral, small groups of protesters gathered amid heavy security.

Tiller, one of the nation's few providers of late-term abortions, was shot and killed last Sunday in the foyer of his church while he was serving as an usher and his wife was singing in the choir. His family had the funeral at a larger church to accommodate the number of mourners.

About 700 people filled the church sanctuary, and about 200 others watched a closed-circuit television broadcast in another room.

Tiller was eulogized by a longtime friend as a passionate and generous man who repeatedly overcame difficult challenges. Maury Tiller said the manner of his father's death resulted in an unimaginable outpouring of love and support for the family.

He added: "I struggle with the manner he was welcomed into Heaven."

Scott Roeder, 51, was arrested a few hours after the shooting just outside Kansas City. Roeder, an opponent of abortion, was charged two days later with the attack at the church, where he had occasionally attended services two months earlier.