A Note of Appreciation

Hello everyone. It's a beautiful day here at Kinross. The sun rose this morning behind a heavy mist and is now burning its way through the veil. The seagulls — a constant presence here in summer due to the abundance of free scraps — are arguing seagull politics outside my window. And I'm sitting here on my bunk with my first cup of coffee. It's my favorite time of the day.

I'm thinking as I do often nowadays, of how close we are to filing a request for commutation from the governor. As I think about the path we've traveled to get to this point, I'm overwhelmed with gratitude for the role you have all played in this.

When Maryann and I started this journey we were alone and felt pretty small in the world next to the Goliath of my situation. Then we looked around and noticed our families and a small group of friends were with us. We took heart and continued, still feeling small but not quite as small as we did in the beginning. Since then, this group of friends and supporters has continued to grow as more and more of you have come to stand with us and hold us up to this point.

Without your prayers and encouragement we would not have been able to sustain our efforts and maintain our hope to get this far. Without your unbelievably generous financial support we wouldn't have been able to hire an attorney to lead us through the legal maze and develop a realistic strategy for moving forward. Then, when we asked for letters, you came through again and they have poured in.

As I read these letters I am extremely humbled and reminded of the abundance of grace in my life. Whatever happens in this legal situation, I want you to know that I've already been blessed beyond anything I deserve by your belief in me, your support and your friendship. I want to thank you for that blessing. I am indebted to you beyond anything that words can express.

Now as we move forward from here I ask you to continue to extend your prayers to the family of Scott Chandler, the man whose life I took. His family was deeply and unjustly harmed by my action, and should be remembered as we make our request for clemency. So think of them when you think of me and what we're trying to do and thank you for caring. Know that this alone is an act of healing and is a thing of great value in our world and in my life. Many blessings.

Troy