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6 THE ROANOKE TIMES Monday, December 14, 2015FROM A1

But Hurst didn’t want his newpartner, Mitzi Keeley, to feel likea replacement.

“Alison just set the stage,”Hurst said.

The Southwest Virginia Bal-let dedicated the show to AlisonParker, 24, Hurst’s late girlfriendand WDBJ colleague. It’s beennearly four months since Hurst,28, lost Parker.

A disgruntled former WDBJemployee shot to death Parkerand Adam Ward, a 27-year-oldcameraman, in August during alive broadcast from Smith Moun-tain Lake.

Hurst set out to accomplish avariety of tasks to honor Parkerbut also to help him grieve by, ina sense, extending his time withher.

“It’s helped me kind of nothave such an abrupt ending toher life,” he said. “When I wokeup that one day, she was gone, soit makes me feel close to her in avery tangible way.”

Like so many people who havelost loved ones to gun violence,Hurst has felt some pressure tomake sure Parker’s name is neverforgotten. With the ballet beingthe final task, Hurst says he isstarting to make a transition inhis life, one that he thinks Parkerwould want him to do.

“Living for her and in herhonor means living for myself,”Hurst said.

Happy and in love

Hurst woke up Aug. 26 to acall from the news station, tell-ing him to come in. He’s the nightanchor, and Parker worked on theearly morning show.

Just hours after her death, hewalked outside the television sta-tion’s building along Hershberg-er Road in northwest Roanoke toaddress some of the local mediabefore the number of reportersswelled as national attentiontook hold. He clutched a scrap-book, filled with memories oftheir first nine months togetherand blank pages they hoped tofill.

They didn’t hide their rela-tionship — which began Jan. 1— but they didn’t share it pub-licly. They had recently movedin together and intended to getengaged. It was some of the hap-piest moments of Hurst’s life.Parker wanted to announce theirrelationship on her professionalFacebook after they returnedfrom a whitewater rafting tripin early August, but Hurst waswary. He didn’t want peopleto relegate her to simply “theanchor’s girlfriend.” He knew shewas talented, and he didn’t want

to detract from viewers seeingthat. So when she died, his firstundertaking for Parker was to gopublic with their relationship.

“I know that she wantedeverybody to know how happyand in love she was, so that wasthe first thing I wanted peopleto know, that we were together,”Hurst said.

Hurst then took time awayfrom work to grieve. Cards, flow-ers, poems and books on griefpoured in.

He went to grief counselingand group therapy sessions. Hespent a lot of time with Parker’sfamily, who told him more abouther, which increased his love forher. Andy Parker, Alison’s father,said Hurst has become like a son.

“It’s been very difficult for us,

and in a way, it may be more dif-ficult for him,” Andy Parker said.“Because at least we had 24 yearswith Alison, but he only had ninemonths.”

Love, not hate

Hurst returned to his anchorchair Sept. 14. During the 6 p.m.news show, with poise headdressed the audience with amessage about love and healing.

“I have been away from youhealing with those Alison lovedthe most and new friends fromplaces like Newtown and Auro-ra,” he said. “Through many,many tears and questions, therehave been laughs, smiles andanswers. I know the answer towhat we all must do, and it is toprofess love, not hate.”

WDBJ General Manager JeffMarks said he never doubtedHurst would return to the air.Hurst’s healing, Marks said, hasbeen critical to others’ healing atthe station.

“As we watch Chris deal withhis emotions and perform thesepublic services that he’s doing —whether on the air or in the ballet— it’s all very inspiring and helpsus stay on course,” he said.

Shortly after his return, heand morning anchor KimberlyMcBroom got to work on a storyParker had only just started.The day before she died, shereturned home and excitedlyshared with Hurst how she hadfinally arranged for interviewswith a family who had someonein hospice care.

The series was a painful onefor Hurst to report, because ofthe topic of death and sayinggoodbye — something he neverhad the chance to say. WDBJNews Director Kelly Zuber saidit helped that Hurst had a partnerin McBroom to help him throughthe challenges of reporting a dif-ficult subject matter.

“Kimberly being on the morn-ing show, she had been close withAlison,” Zuber said.

WDBJ aired the series, called“The Long Goodbye,” in Novem-ber. During one segment aboutsupport groups, Hurst choked upon live television.

“Grief is the pain we feel aftera loss,” he spoke to the camera,with Alison’s beaming face on ascreen behind him. “Mourning isthe visible showing of that grief.Saying their name out loud. Ali-son, I do love you more than everbefore.”

The series was well-receivedby the Roanoke Valley commu-nity on social media. Hurst hasbeen public with his grievingprocess, posting sometimes mul-tiple times a week on his profes-sional Facebook about momentshe and Alison shared together.The support from the region hasbeen comforting, he said.

Sprinkled throughout socialmedia have been the suggestionsthat the shooting was a hoax,that Hurst and Parker’s fatherare actors. Hurst has had to pushthrough that, but he said suchclaims have generally not comefrom people in the region.

“I think we’re in a unique posi-tion where the hate and vitriolhas not come from this commu-nity,” he said.

Spreading love

To celebrate six monthstogether, Hurst bought Parkera pair of tickets to Taylor Swift.Parker was a big fan. With theright shade of red lipstick and

her hair styled a certain way,Hurst said, she even looked likethe singer.

Hurst thought about goingalone. He also thought aboutgoing with Parker’s mother. Ulti-mately, he gave the tickets away.

He got in touch with a 13-year-old girl named Hope, with whomParker had grown close. Parkerinterviewed Hope for a spe-cial on child abuse and neglect,which aired a week before herdeath.

Hurst gave Hope and hermother the tickets to the showin Greensboro, North Carolina,and then he also got in touchwith local radio station K92 to getthem to work their contacts andget the two backstage to meetSwift.

“Everyone has been trying togive me so much love, and herewas my opportunity to try and doas much as possible with that,”Hurst said.

Hurst saw Hope on Friday.She sang in a concert choir per-formance at a Roanoke Countymiddle school. She wore Park-er’s pearl earrings, necklace andbracelet that Hurst gave her.

Hurst and Parker’s family arestill sorting through her things,such as the dresses she woreon camera or bought becauseshe loved getting dolled up foran event with Hurst. Hurst saidhe wants to spread her love andmemories.

For days after the shooting,Hurst held on to two items: thescrapbook he showed everyoneoutside the newsroom and a pairof her ballet pointe shoes.

Hurst never had the chanceto see Parker dance on stage.Besides “The Nutcracker,” Park-er planned to dance in an eventto raise money for the SalvationArmy’s Turning Point domesticviolence shelter. Her partnerwould have been Pedro Szalay,artistic director of the SouthwestVirginia Ballet.

“It’s been very emotional,”Szalay said. “Chris has been verysupportive in keeping her memo-ries alive.”

Hurst plans to get her pointeshoes bronzed and made into aplaque, which he’d like to havedisplayed at the Ray Holling-sworth Dance and Arts Studioin Martinsville, where Parkerdanced for 12 years.

On Sunday, before Hurst’sfinal performance at the Ber-glund Performing Arts Theatre,Szalay draped Parker’s wornpointe shoes from a nail on awooden clock sitting on stage.Hurst gazed at the shoes, wipedaway tears and gratefully huggedSzalay: Alison got her moment onstage.

HurSt: ‘It makes me feel close to her’FroM 1

HEATHER ROUSSEAU | The Roanoke Times

Chris Hurst hangs Alison Parker’s pointe ballet shoes on a clock set piece before his Sunday performance. In the first scene, Hurst and his dance partner, Mitzi Keeley, admire them.

Courtesy of Chris Hurst

Alison Parker was a skilled dancer. Parker’s father, Andy Parker, took thisphoto in May.

Courtesy of Chris Hurst

Chris Hurst and Alison Parker had planned to go see Taylor Swift inGreensboro, North Carolina. Hurst gave the tickets to a girl named Hope.

“I know that she wanted everybody to know how happy and in love she was,so that was the first thing I wanted people to know, that we were together.”

WDBJ’s Chris Hurst, on his girlfriend, Alison Parker