'A beacon of hope': Officials, community mourn Memphis pastor Ricky Floyd's death

Prominent Memphis pastor Ricky Floyd was killed successful a Downtown shooting Wednesday morning.

Floyd was killed connected Kentucky Street, betwixt the Eagle Distribution Company and Momma's Bar and Grill. Memphis constabulary accidental they person arrested and charged 42-year-old Samantha Jackson.

Floyd's decease drew contiguous reactions from nationalist officials, spiritual leaders and Memphians who took to Floyd's Facebook leafage to stock their condolences.

Memphis Mayor Paul Young calls for extremity to weapon violence

Memphis Mayor Paul Young was among the archetypal to commemorate Floyd. Young took to X, formerly known arsenic Twitter, and called for an extremity to "senseless weapon violence."

"My bosom is much than dense contiguous arsenic we mourn the tragic nonaccomplishment of Pastor Ricky Floyd to senseless weapon violence," Young said. "Pastor Floyd was a beloved leader, friend, mentor and servant to our city. He dedicated his beingness to lifting up others and guiding countless souls with his wisdom. His decease is much than a nonaccomplishment for his household and his congregation — it is simply a nonaccomplishment for Memphis. Gun unit successful our metropolis has taken excessively galore lives, shattered excessively galore families and near excessively galore communities successful grief. This indispensable stop.

"We cannot let senseless weapon unit to specify us. We indispensable basal unneurotic — neighbors, leaders, instrumentality enforcement and religion communities — to bring meaningful, lasting change. I inquire each Memphian to commune for Pastor Floyd's family, his congregation and each who are hurting. Let's determination into action. Let's enactment unneurotic to physique a Memphis wherever tragedies similar this are nary longer a regular reality. We beryllium it to Pastor Floyd, and we beryllium it to each other.

"Rest successful power, Pastor Floyd. Your airy volition not beryllium forgotten."

Rev. Bill Adkins remembers Floyd arsenic 'a beacon of hope' successful Frayser

Rev. Bill Adkins — pastor astatine Greater Imani Church, the Cathedral of Faith successful Frayser — was a adjacent person of Floyd's.

"He was a idiosyncratic that we were ever truthful arrogant of," Adkins told The Commercial Appeal successful a telephone interview. "Pastor Floyd was a beacon of anticipation successful the Frayser community. He did truthful overmuch for truthful many. He did galore things that truthful galore different churches bash not bash arsenic acold arsenic going into the street, helping the underserved, helping the underprivileged, looking for those that needed guidance, moving with the younker successful the community, doing everything helium could — helping commencement businesses. His ministry was implicit and full connected each level, for the full person. It was conscionable a tremendous nonaccomplishment for america to suffer him past night."

Floyd called Adkins "Pops," helium said, adding it was "all helium ever called me."

"I'm devastated by his loss. All I tin accidental to the Pursuit of God Church household is beryllium arrogant of the enactment that helium accomplished and what helium had built and hopefully, somehow, it tin proceed to spell on," Adkins said.

This nonfiction primitively appeared connected Memphis Commercial Appeal: Officials, assemblage mourn Memphis pastor Ricky Floyd's shooting death