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by his Aunt, Brenda Arms Michael David Westerman was born on August 20, 1975 in Montgomery County, Tennessee. He was the son of David and Joann (McEwing) Westerman. He lived in Guthrie, Ky. during his childhood and early teen years. Michael was a member of Tiny Town Baptist Chruch and was active in the Royal Ambassadors. Michael attended Guthrie Elementary School from 1980-1988, Todd Middle School from 1988-1989 and Todd Central High School from 1989-1993. He was active in the Future Farmers of America and was voted the F. H. A. Sweetheart during his senior year. Michael graduated in May, 1993. Michael was well liked, a very loving child, and he grew up to be the same as an adult. He had a sparkle in his eyes and a smile that lit up our world. He could make you laugh or smile, even if you didn't feel like it. In 1990, he and his family moved to Trenton, Kentucky. Michael had a Confederate Flag that he hung on the wall of his room. He also had a small one that he flew on the back of his three wheeler. Michael's personal reason for flying the Confederate Flag was to show the pride he felt in his ancestors who fought and died for the flag, as well as to show his Southern Heritage. He was interested in his family's history, wanting to know as much as possible about his ancestors. His main interests involved relatives that fought during the Civil War and Vietnam. Michael only knew this part of his family through pictures and family stories. In 1991, he had saved enough money to purchase his first car. The flag went into the back window of his car. Later, he purchased a truck and mounted the flag onto the toolbox in the bed of his truck. The flag was to Michael not just a rememberance of his history , but a symbol of the pride that he chose to show for the school that he attended and from which he graduated. Michael enjoyed doing the things that most young men enjoyed. He liked hunting, fishing, camping, and swimming. Mostly he enjoyed teasing his sisters, Cynthia and April. Michael loved to eat. He would always look for something to snack on as soon as he got home, even if he had already eaten somewhere else. Michael would always raid his parent's refrigerator and cupboards. Michael started deer hunting when he was ten years old, but he did not kill his first deer until 1990, with a bow and arrow. Michael also had an interest in four-wheeler racing. In fact the day he was shot, he had just torn down his four wheeler to get it ready for his first race. He had told his dad he wanted to be good enough to be on ESPN. During his junior year in school, Michael studied the Civil War. His class traveled to Fort Donelson State Park, located in Dover, Tennessee, to view an actual battlefield. It was on this trip that he met Hannah Laster. They began to date and made plans to marry after completing their schooling. Michael and Hannah were married November 21, 1993. They resided in Elkton, Kentucky, where he worked for Eagle Lumber Company. Their childern, twins, were born on December 9, 1994. Michael Austin and Michaela Adrianna were born prematurely, but were healthy enough to come home from the hospital on December 30, 1994. Michael was a very emotional and affectionate young man. After his children were born, he wrote a letter to each child, placing it in their baby books. He wrote about how he felt about their birth, the joy he would have being their father, and the life he had planned for them to spend together. At 4:30 P. M., Saturday, January 14, 1995, Michael and Hannah, leaving their twins for the first time since they had been born, decided to go out for supper and shopping. They left their children with their maternal grandparents at home and went to Clarksville, Tennessee for supper. They returned to Guthrie, shopping at a convenience store, while enroute to Springfield and on to Rivergate Mall to go shopping. Michael was pumping gas into the truck when he noticed four black juveniles in the car. They pulled up behind the truck pointing and jeering about the Confederate Flag in the bed of his truck, and continued on to Springfield. When they crossed the Kentucky - Tennessee state line, they noticed two cars were following them. Michael pushed Hannah in the floorboard as the cars got closer. One car pulled alongside the truck and fired one shot from a pistol into the drivers side door of the truck. The bullet struck Michael's left side, traveled through his heart and lodged in the right side of his body. Michael drove for a distance, not realizing he had been shot. He then told Hannah that she would have to drive. While still being pursued by the two cars, they switched seats, driving through a ditch and field. Hannah attemped to get the truck back onto the road while they were still being fired upon by the juveniles in the car. As she drove to the hospital, Hannah and Michael prayed and cried. Upon arriving at Clarksville Memorial Hospital, Michael received emergency treatment and was transferred by ambulance to the Vanderbilt Hospital Trauma Unit. Weather conditions prevented him from being flown in Life Flight Helicopter, delaying his treatment. On Saturday night he was operated on but did not regain consciousness. On Sunday, January 15, 1995, Michael was prounced dead at 6:30 P.M. Michael would never intentionally hurt or harm anyone. He loved joking around with his family and friends; enjoying the time spent with them, regardless of their race. The juveniles that fired into Michael's truck took not only a loving son, husband and father, brother, grandson, nephew and cousin, but a true spirit of affection and compassion from our family. Today, Michael cannot enter the home of his parents to raid their refrigator and cupboards, looking for something to eat. He will never again hold his children. He will never, ever give special hugs to the ones he left behind. These juveniles took man who beliveved he could never get too old to hug and kiss his father. He will not realize his dreams. |
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