A Mississippi church community is grieving the heartbreaking loss of a longtime church pianist and her husband after the couple was found murdered inside their home last week in a tragedy that has left neighbors stunned and church members praying for justice and redemption.

Members of New Hebron Baptist Church in New Hebron, Mississippi, are mourning the deaths of Bill Blair, 74, and his wife, Carol Blair, 71, who faithfully served their church for decades. Carol Blair had played piano at the church for more than 30 years, while her husband served on the church’s security team for a similar amount of time.

Authorities say 17-year-old Cordarius Hobbs has been charged with murdering the couple, along with armed robbery, burglary and home invasion charges.

According to WAPT 16, deputies responded to the couple’s home near Mendenhall shortly before 12:30 p.m. on June 3 after concerned relatives were unable to contact them. Simpson County Sheriff Paul Mullins said deputies arrived to find the front door open.

Investigators allege Hobbs opened fire on responding deputies from inside the home, injuring one Simpson County deputy who is now recovering at home. What followed was a tense six-hour standoff between law enforcement and the teen suspect.

Authorities eventually deployed tear gas into the home, forcing Hobbs outside. Officials say he continued firing at officers before a Mississippi Highway Patrol trooper returned fire, striking the teenager with non-life-threatening injuries. Hobbs was treated at a hospital before being taken to jail.

Church members say the shocking violence has devastated the close-knit congregation.

Glenda Westmoreland, secretary at New Hebron Baptist Church for more than 36 years, told The Christian Post that church members immediately turned to prayer when they heard what had happened.

“It was mostly praying the whole time we had heard that this was going on,” Westmoreland said.

On Sunday, the church honored Bill and Carol Blair with floral tributes as grieving members reflected on the couple’s years of faithful service and kindness to others.

Westmoreland said the couple had tried to help Hobbs by hiring him to assist around their farm after Bill Blair began struggling with health issues.

“They are just the type of people to help,” she explained.

According to Westmoreland, Bill Blair had recently been selling land and equipment, including a tractor, and she suspects the teenager may have believed the couple had access to money.

“I think the kid realized he had sold some stuff and maybe would have a lot of money,” she said. “I don’t know if that’s what he had in mind or what.”

The church secretary also noted that Hobbs was known in the community and had reportedly been arrested multiple times before.

“Every time he got arrested, he ended up getting let go,” she said.

Hobbs was denied bond during his initial court appearance on June 5.

Despite the horror surrounding the killings, Westmoreland said her hope is ultimately for the teenager to come to faith in Christ while still facing accountability for his alleged actions.

“Well, first of all, I’d love to see him get saved,” she said. “[But I] would like to see him not let go. I’m scared that if they were just to let him go, this would probably happen again.”

As the New Hebron Baptist Church community continues to process the tragedy, many are leaning on prayer and their faith while remembering a couple described as generous servants who spent decades faithfully serving both their church and their neighbors.