Funeral protesters are an embarrassment

I want to thank Leonard Pitts for his April 11 column on the renegade Baptist church (Westboro Baptist, Topeka, Kan.) that degrades soldiers' funerals.

My dad, Charles Tuegel, served in World War II, gone all four years, his unit the Red Bull out of Dubuque was awarded the longest time spent in a war zone, 454 days. So you church renegades can “voice your God-given American rights” at a soldier's funeral?

American soldiers gave them everything so you can “voice your opinion.” And what is this homosexual opinion got to do with a soldier's funeral? Thank God you will never meet my dad. It's like Pitts said, hell will have to scrape a lower level on the lowest bowels of hell to accommodate your group.

My wife and I live next door to a wonderful Baptist family, very caring, an asset to the community, and they pray to God, sincerely, daily.

For the hate group, Satan must be its leader. I would love to read that a member of your group - don't call yourself a church - dies and a group of vets show up at your funeral and say, “Satan, pick up your trash.” They won't, but it sounds good.

I called six Baptist churches a year ago to ask their opinion on the sick “church.” No one replied, embarrassed? Please call.

Steven Tuegel

Marion