December 1, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – In an e-mail this morning, pro-life leader Randall Terry informed supporters that his eldest son, Jamiel, had died in a tragic car accident yesterday.
Terry said that the accident took place at around 7 am. eastern time, and involved a head-on collision. “The three passengers in the other car were injured in varying degrees, but the police told me they will all be ok,” he wrote.
“We are all in a state of shock, and unthinkable grief. I loved him dearly; we all did.”
“I beg you for your prayers for our family, and I beg you to pray for the mercy of God, and the eternal rest of Jamiel’s soul.”
While Terry had had a very public falling out with his son seven years ago, after Jamiel publicly announced that he was gay, Terry told pro-life activist and writer Jill Stanek this morning that he and his son were reconciled.
“We spoke regularly,” Randall told Stanek. “We’d even made plans for a speaking tour.”
Priests for Life leader Fr. Frank Pavone told LifeSiteNews.com that he too has spoken to Terry this morning.
“Like any father, Randall is experiencing tremendous grief over this,” Fr. Pavone said. “I assured him of my prayers and support.”
“He has spent so much of his life and energy helping other fathers who have lost their children, helping parents who have lost their children to abortion. Yes they are different circumstances, but it makes his loss more poignant and sad in experiencing this type of loss.”
Referring to the controversy which has surrounded Randall Terry both within and without the pro-life movement, Fr. Pavone said: “Now is the time to unite in prayer for Randall and his son and his family. On all sides we need to unite in prayer.”
Terry, a larger-than-life figure known for his edgy methods of promoting the pro-life message, has been in the news recently after announcing that he is launching a bid for the Democratic presidential nomination against President Obama.