JASPER, Ga. — Loved ones are sharing the legacy of a Veterans Affairs social worker killed on the job this week.
Nic Crews, 34, died Tuesday after investigators say a patient shot him at a VA clinic in Jasper.
An armed bystander and police shot and killed the patient, Lawrence Michels, 51. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said he is from Jasper. They have not confirmed his military status.
One of Crews’ closest friends, Cody Porter, spoke to Channel 2’s Courtney Francisco Friday.
He said it’s hard to imagine how life will go on without Crews.
“We’re devastated, just absolutely devastated,” said Porter.
Porter said he met Crews when they were students at Kennesaw State University.
“He was infectious,” said Porter. “It was hard not to feel close to Nic Crews.”
He said Crews went on to earn his master’s degree in social work at the University of Tennessee.
“He was in ministry before that, and his heart has always been to serve people, to talk to people, and draw people out,” said Porter.
For more than two years, Crews’ family said he worked with veterans at the clinic in Jasper
“Anyone who would walk in and be in need and be at that point where, ‘I need help,’ he felt like there was hope for that person,” said Porter.
Tuesday, investigators said Michels walked in for a mental health consultation and shot Crews.
“I feel like I can speak for Nic on this because I knew him so well. He had a compassion on that guy. He had a compassionate heart towards him,” said Porter.
He said even he has compassion for the veteran that investigators said killed his friend, “for what happened to him in his life, for the desperation he felt,” said Porter.
Crews leaves behind his wife, Alyssa. She said they just celebrated his 34th birthday over the weekend with their two children: a 2-year-old girl and 4-year-old boy. His wife is expecting their third any day now.
“It feels like the world can be so divisive,” said Porter. “Cherish that there are good people in this world. There is hope. For me and for Nic, I believe that hope is in Christ. That is what he would want people to know about him,” said Porter.
If viewers would like to support Nic’s widow, Alyssa, and their three children, a GoFundMe account has been set up to collect donations:
A memorial service for Nic Crews will be held this Sunday, 2 p.m., North River Church of Christ, 320 Austin Avenue, Marietta, GA 30060.
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