OAKLAND — On the often-unforgiving streets of East Oakland, he is known as “Brother John” to the dozens of homeless and downtrodden fed for more than a year by the 29-year-old man and his family.
Brother John and his wife would cook a hot meal at their home and with their young children in tow — first in a pickup truck and recently in a van equipped with a hot-plate — drove a regular route to make sure the less fortunate had a decent meal.
Early Wednesday their acts of kindness ended in one of the worse ways imaginable. Someone in a vehicle opened fire on their van moments after they served up a fish dinner to one of their regulars.
The man, who is the stepfather of the children, was shot in the head. He was on life support Wednesday. His 35-year-old wife was grazed on the shoulder. One child, a 3-year-old girl, was hit in the arm. She and her 7-year-ols sister were left screaming hysterically.
Their names were not released. The wife told police she and Brother John were both ministers working at a foundation for battered women.