08:37 PM EDT on Thursday, July 20, 2006

By COLLEEN ODEGAARD / 6NEWS
E-mail Colleen: Codegaard@WCNC.com

6NEWS

Grace Minor talked exclusively to 6NEWS Anchor Colleen Odegaard.

It was an unthinkable crime.  On the morning of June 14, police say a father shot his two sons before turning the gun on himself in their Union County home.  Ryan Minor, 10, died the following day and Ross Minor, 8, was left blind.

In the weeks since then, many people in the community have wondered how the boys' mother Grace Minor has been coping.  She spoke exclusively to 6NEWS Anchor Colleen Odegaard about what happened inside the Wesley Chapel home.

“I just think something clicked. Something went wrong…That's what I think because he loved his boys,” Grace said.

Mark Minor shot his two sons before shooting himself, police said.

“Unfathomable,” Grace said.  “And the most horrific thing in my whole life.”

But the headlines are only the beginning.  The real story is about human spirit and this family's determination to overcome their tragedy.

“Ross knows now it's me and him and we're going to be a team forever,” Grace said.  “And he's gradually trusting me more.  I don't lie to him about one single thing.”

Grace says she's taking the advice of doctors to tell Ross the truth about what happened.  She says since that dark morning in June, life has consisted of countless doctors appointments and Ross learning how to live without sight.

“He's got a lot to learn, you know,” she said.  “He's got Braille, he's got the cane.  There's a lot for him to learn but he's fortunately an extremely bright child.”

And Ross is just a child, a child who has said he was born to make people laugh.  His humor makes this difficult story a little bit easier to tell.

It doesn't take long to realize Ross is a resilient boy.  But it's certainly been hard living without his older brother Ryan, who Grace describes as being a kid who loved the outdoors.  She talks about what she told Ryan before he passed away.  “I knew so I climbed up in his bed and I told him, I said to him, ‘Ryan, don't fight.  Don't fight to stay.’  I said… (pause)  I said ‘I love you but I'll be okay.  If you go to heaven I'll be okay.’” 

“I know my son wouldn't want to be lying in a bed or a wheelchair for the rest of his life.  And I told him, ‘You can go to heaven and you can build all the tree forts you want and the homeowner's association won't make you take them down.’  And I said, ‘Ryan, go.  Mommy's going to be fine.’”

Grace says because she's been so busy with Ross' medical needs, she hasn't had time to properly grieve for Ryan.  She says she knows her time for that will come.

Ross has a long road ahead of him, adjusting to life without sight after the shooting. Grace says her son is getting used to using his cane.

Ross recently visited his school, St. Matthew.

“He was on the playground yesterday. He navigated his way from the classroom to the playground to the slide and went on the swing,” Grace said.

While Ross is slowly getting better physically, the emotional wounds may take even longer to heal.

“He knows his dad loved him so I think his struggle now is to try to understand how could somebody love me yet do this,” Grace said. “So he has a general mistrust for adults, including myself, because he knows I love him and would never lie to him.”

Grace says she's working every day on rebuilding that bond with her son. She says Ross has his down days and misses his brother Ryan. But he's getting a little help from his friends.

Ross even included his big brother in his tradition of releasing balloons into the sky. He usually says he's sending them to Jesus, but that’s not what he did the last time. Ross asked for a marker and wrote ‘To Ryan, I miss you. Love, Ross’ and released the balloon outside.

Grace says she receives countless emails from well-wishers and doesn't have the time to respond to all of them. She says she reads every one of them and is saving them so she can read them to Ross when he's ready to hear them.

A fundraiser for Ross Minor is being held Friday and Saturday at Ballantyne Village, located at the intersection of Ballantyne Commons Parkway and John J Delaney Drive. There will be live music, a silent auction, and activities for kids. The events will be held Friday night from 7-10 and Saturday from 1-5 and again from 7-10. Proceeds will go to the Ross Minor Medical Fund.