Plan of Salvation Comforts Parents of Man Killed in Barcelona Terrorist Attack
Contributed By R. Scott Lloyd, Church News staff writer
Daniel and Joann Tucker are the parents of Jared Tucker, who died in the terrorist attack in Barcelona, Spain, on August 17.
Article Highlights
- Knowledge of the plan of salvation can comfort us after the death of loved ones.
Jared Tucker, the only American to perish in the August 17 terrorist attack in Barcelona, Spain, is a member of the Church, according to family members who contacted the Church News.
Tucker and his wife, Heidi Nunes-Tucker, who were living in the San Francisco Bay area, were simultaneously observing their honeymoon and first wedding anniversary on a trip to Europe.
National news media reported that the couple were at a kiosk in the middle of Las Ramblas shopping when Jared stepped away to find a restroom.
A van plowed straight into the crowd, causing the deaths of 13 people and injuring more than 100. Jared, 42, was among those who died.
“They had spent four days in Venice and were finishing their trip in Barcelona,” Daniel M. Tucker, Jared’s father, told the Church News. “Jared moved ahead and was maybe one minute apart from Heidi when the van sped by.”
Police evacuated the street, and Heidi was among those who were pushed into nearby shops for safety. When she came back out, she could not locate her husband.
Jared and Heidi Tucker are shown onboard a ship during their honeymoon trip to Europe. He died in a terrorist attack in Barcelona, Spain, August 17. Photo courtesy of Daniel M. Tucker.
For 24 hours, he was missing. Back home, Dan and his wife, Joann, were hopeful when they saw a picture of the incident on the internet showing a man about Jared’s size wearing clothing of the same color he had been wearing.
But the hope would not last. Heidi was summoned to the American consulate, where she was shown pictures of victims who had died and eventually made a positive identification of her husband.
“We have a family-owned business, and he’s helped me since day one,” said Dan Tucker, who installs fiberglass surfaces in swimming pools. “It was not just father-son relationship, but a working-together relationship.”
“We’ve had a ton of wonderful people come by, supporting us, loving us, and praying for us,” said Joann, who works in the Oakland California Temple. She and her husband are members of the Northgate 1st Ward, Walnut Creek Stake, in Lafayette, where they have lived since 1966.
Joann said Jared, father of three teenage daughters from a previous marriage, was known for his good heart and being a friend to those in need.
“My goodness, practically everybody that came up to us had a story to tell about him,” she said. “Even when he was young, he was big and broad-shouldered. He would stick up for kids who were picked on because they were different. He would pull himself up to his full height and say, ‘Knock it off!’”
Though not active in the Church, Jared would help out with ward activities such as Fourth of July breakfasts.
Dan Tucker said a conviction of the plan of salvation has been a comfort to him and his wife as they have coped with the loss of their son.
“As the father of Jared, I can identify with some of the fathers we read about in the scriptures,” Dan wrote in an email to the Church News. “Adam, Noah, Isaac, Lehi, among others, had a lot of heartache to deal with.
“But the father I can most identify with is Joseph the carpenter. Even though he wasn’t the real father of Jesus, he provided for Him all his life. … Joseph had a family-owned business. From the time his son was old enough I am sure they worked together in their carpenter’s shop. … I can only begin to identify with the heartache that Joseph and Mary must have felt during the last few days of their son’s life. (I am sure if Joseph had already passed on, he was still watching from heaven.)”
