Community gathers for prayer service in memory of Tuggy

There’s a phrase that goes, “It takes a village to raise a child.”

But it also takes a village to help cope with the death of a community member.

That’s the case in Pine Grove Mills.

On Saturday afternoon, the St. Paul Lutheran Church congregation got a little bigger.

Pastor Paul Tomkiel teamed up with Pine Grove Presbyterian Church Pastor Carl Campbell to hold a community prayer service in memory of Jean Tuggy, at St. Paul.

“We’ve gotten a lot of inquiries, and felt something like this was necessary in a time people are dealing with a lot of emotion,” Tomkiel said. “There’s been a lot of unlikely circumstances happening in our community.”

Tuggy, 60, was found dead Jan. 21 in her Irion Street home.

Centre County Coroner Scott Sayers classified her death as a homicide, and police confirmed, as of Saturday afternoon, there are still no leads.

“It’s an active investigation, and since we’ve offered a reward, we’ve not gotten any leads from that,” Ferguson Township police Chief Diane Conrad said.

Last month, the Centre County commissioners approved the increase from a $1,000 to $5,000 reward to anyone with information that helps authorities find the person who allegedly killed Tuggy.

A few weeks later, the body of Corinne Pena, 35, was found along Plainfield Road.

Police said the Philadelphia woman died from a drug overdose at the home of a Patton Township man who then reportedly transported the body to the Ferguson Township road.

“It’s unusual — these kind of things normally don’t happen here, but it’s proof that no place is immune to these circumstances,” Conrad said. “This rocked the community in a way no one has seen before, but it’s also showing how tight this community is.”

Conrad was invited to the prayer service and was among about two dozen others in attendance. Guests who were asked to share memories of Tuggy said they didn’t want to go on the record.

But Campbell said though it’s hard to find light at the end of the tunnel, it’s helped make people more aware of their surroundings.

“I’ve been here 30 years and haven’t seen such a thing,” he said. “I don’t know if there are any positives that come out of this tragedy — it’s hard to imagine — but I think more people are looking out for one another. They’re looking after each other.”

The service started with a general prayer followed by song, silent reflection, a uniting of hands and a final prayer that included Tuggy and her family, and others who the public asked the pastors to pray for.

“A lot of people are on edge, and this is how we can faithfully address it,” Tomkiel said.

Tuggy was a member of State College Alliance Church.

Conrad said Ferguson Township police are also working with State College, Patton Township and Penn State police departments. State police are also aiding in the investigation.

“We’re working with everyone, and still waiting for lab work,” Conrad said. “Like I said before, this kind of thing can happen anywhere, and it happens so often in some communities, which is why test results are taking so long to come in. There are so many ahead of us.”

She said police are still urging the public to be vigilant.

“We’ve said before that it comes down to being smart about things like not allowing a stranger in your home,” Conrad said. “I think it’s helpful for the community since we found answers — though still investigating — what happened to Corinne Pena, and they can know were going to do our best to get answers (about Tuggy’s death).”

This story was originally published March 5, 2016 at 10:20 PM with the headline "Community gathers for prayer service in memory of Tuggy."