The Sacred Acre The Ed Thomas Story

Mark Tabb, Stefan Rudnicki

eAudio - 2011

When tragedy devastated a small town, an unlikely source of inspiration pieced the community back together in this dramatic true story. On a Sunday in May 2008, an F5 tornado hit the town of Parkersburg, Iowa, killing eight people and destroying 250 homes and businesses within a span of 34 seconds. The next day, Parkersburg's beloved football coach, Ed Thomas, made a stunning prediction: "God willing, we will play our first home game here on this field this season."One hundred days later, the home team scored a victory on the field they dubbed the Sacred Acre, serving as a galvanizing point for the town to band together and rebuild. But just as Parkersburg was recovering, another disaster struck.While working with a group of ...football and volleyball players early one morning, one of Thomas's former students walked in and gunned him down at point-blank range. Thomas was only 58 years old. The murder of this hometown hero spread across... more