On September 28th, 2025, a tragic event happened in Grand Blanc, Michigan at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The man that caused all of this, Thomas Jacob Sanford, crashed his truck into the building shot many people, and then set the building on fire. Many wonder if it is even safe to step outside, run errands, or even go to church.
The attack began around 10:25AM when Thomas Jacob Sanford, later to be identified as a 40-year-old former marine, drove his pickup truck into Sunday service and started a brutal gunfight. Responding officers reached the scene later to figure out that Sanford was killed by other police around 10:33AM. To add to the gunfire and fire damage, authorities have also found several explosives and other devices at the scene and believed that this was deliberately used as part of the attack.
More than four people are confirmed dead, and eight people are injured by gunfire and smoke inhalation. Authorities are investigating reports about Sanford and found out that he “hated people of Mormon faith”. Sanford attended the church months before the attack, but the pastors did not suspect him as a threat.
“We were trying to gather as many people as we could. I saw the active shooter come out of the building, and at that point, I just started trying to drive away,” stated a speaker on CNN.
A search of Sanford’s home is also under investigation to have a better understanding of what led to his attack. The FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) has also received many reports saying that he was around the church all the time but never looked like the person to do anything.
“Increased accessibility to weapons, social isolation, mental health issues, and all sort of contributes to violence like shootings and fires like this one in Michigan just shows that these can lead to increased anxiety, desensitization, and a breakdown of communities’ trust.” Tiana McKinney, a freshman at Wharton High School, said.
Timothy Jones had been going to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for years and stated that Sundays are “supposed to be a time of peace and a time of reflection and worship”. Not only Jones, but many other long – term church members have stated that they are in “absolute shock”. As a community, they have also stated that they have always known that church as a place of peace. Not a place of violence.
Shootings in public spaces have become so brutal and — in recent years, incidents are not only being reported in churches, but also schools, shopping centers, offices, and other everyday locations. What used to be considered rare is now appearing more than it should in news reports across the county. As these terrible events continue to occur, there is a growing concern about how frequent they have become, and how more people are getting injured or killed every day. Public spaces like churches that were once considered a safe space for people are now associated with risk. Daily lives are being affected by how much gun violence has increased throughout the years.
“This can motivate kids and teens to step up and make a change and prevent things like this from happening again, and with gun violence, it will make them realize that this could easily happen to anyone” Zainah Salem, a freshman at Wharton High School, said.
The terrible incident that happened in Grand Blanc Michigan just shows as a reminder that places, especially churches, are meant for peace. When violence like shootings and fires invade places like this, it not only affects the community, but the idea for this future, and what these spaces will represent.