Conference Minister Shares Prayer, Pastoral Letter following deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti

The following Pastoral Letter was sent to churches on January 27, 2026, and included in the Coconut Wireless, January 28, 2026.

Dear Faith ‘Ohana,

Grace and peace to you in the name of the One who calls us to love mercy, seek justice, and walk humbly with God.

It is with a grieving heart that I write to you following the tragic deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Each of these beloved children of God leaves behind a constellation of family, friends, and communities who now carry the weight of loss and unanswered questions. We hold their names tenderly, trusting that God receives them with compassion and surrounds their loved ones with comfort deeper than words.

As the Body of Christ, we do not turn away from sorrow. We remember. We lament. And in the presence of God, we tell the truth about pain.

The deaths of Renee and Alex do not occur in isolation. They are part of a wider landscape of suffering in our nation marked by policies and practices that often deny dignity, fracture families, and amplify harm rather than healing.

During this time, we cannot ignore the broader climate of cruelty that has shaped national policy over a number of administrations and has left lasting wounds. As followers of Jesus, whose ministry centered the vulnerable, the excluded, and the oppressed, we are called to name what is unjust and harmful.Yet even as we speak the truth, we do so not from a place of partisanship, but from our rootedness in the Gospel and our commitment to God’s vision of a world where all can flourish.

In moments such as these, we remember that lament is holy. Anger on behalf of the suffering is sacred. Compassion is courage. And the work of justice is an expression of our deepest hope. So I invite every congregation in the Hawai‘i Conference to:

• Pray for the families and friends of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

• Create space for communal lament, knowing that grief shared becomes grief held.

• Stand with those harmed by systems of cruelty, offering accompaniment, advocacy, and

  presence rooted in Christ-like love.

• Continue the work of kingdom building, not for political gain, but because the Gospel compels us to love our neighbors fiercely and without condition.

Beloved, God is near to the brokenhearted. God hears the cry of the afflicted. God strengthens the weary and binds up the wounds of those who mourn. May our Conference embody Christ’s love with renewed courage and may God’s healing presence surround us all.

Rev. Dr. David K. Popham

Conference Minister

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Prayer in the Time of this National Nightmare

Holy and merciful God, hear the trembling cry that rises from our hearts.

We come carrying the weight of grief and its lingering ache of life interrupted. For Renee Good and Alex Pretti, we offer this lament. Hold their memory in your eternal gentleness. Gather every fragment of their stories such as the joys that shaped them, the struggles they endured, the light they gave to those who walked beside them, so they may not be erased from our national landscape.

In these days when our nation trembles with unrest and confusion, we come before you as people exhausted by the cruelty of this U.S. administration. Voices cry out in the streets, some in pain, some in fear, all in frustration seeking something better than what we have now.

Teach us, O God, how to resist those that distort truth, trade in fear, sow division, and cloud our collective conscience. Grant us courage to reject falsehood wherever it arises. Strengthen us to stand against cynicism and to refuse the normalization of cruelty. Let us be people of discernment in this age of noise.

In this nightmare season, remind us that you are the God who brings hope to what seems lost. Anchor us in love and guide us to build a world where truth is tended like a flame and every human life – like Renee’s, like Alex’s – is honored with tenderness and resolve.

Make us instruments of your peace, Ke Akua, not by ignoring injustice, but by refusing to surrender to hatred. Grant our nation the courage to become better than we are.

Amene.

David K. Popham

Conference Minister