CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The wife of one CMPD officer remembers the fear that came when her husband was called to duty at the same time Monday’s tragic shooting occurred.
The terror of that deadly shooting, which took the lives of three U.S. Marshals and one CMPD officer, is fresh in Lena Kukharchuk’s mind.
Kukharchuk’s husband, Max, rushed out of their home with no time for good bye. Kukharchuk says she panicked after hearing about the shooting incident from friends. She didn’t hear anything from her husband for an hour.
Finally she received a call from her husband, explaining he was not sent to the Galway Drive residence where gun fire occurred.
“I finally heard his voice, I mean, first of all, it was absolute relief,” Kukharchuk said. “…That he’s not there and he’s not in the situation.”
As an officer’s wife and social media content creator Kukharchuk called for support the only way she knew how, with a post to TikTok. She created a short video, detailing her experience and fear, while also calling for prayers to support the law enforcement members involved in the tragic shooting.
“I created that TikTok more as a call to please pray if you see this,” Kukharchuk said.
That post received more than 74,000 likes and 1,000 shares. Kukharchuk says that video brought together spouses of officers all over the nation. She received support in her comment section and direct messages, with more than 4,000 comments on her post.
Kukharchuk adds she’s also been able to connect with spouses of recent CMPD recruits, which has helped her to build a support system she never saw coming.