On a cold December day in 2007, the life of Gary Eugene Scharf, a 48-year-old White/Caucasian male, was tragically cut short in a senseless act of violence. On a business trip from his home in Lincoln, Nebraska, Scharf had stopped at the Von Maur department store inside Omaha's Westroads Mall on December 5th to do some Christmas shopping before his flight.
What should have been a mundane errand turned into a scene of terror when a gunman opened fire within the store.
A charismatic and adventurous man, Scharf was known for his humor, love, and compassion. He was a devoted father, son, and brother with deep roots in his community and the agricultural chemical industry. His commitment to helping others was a defining characteristic, so much so that his ex-wife, with whom he was planning to remarry, called him her "Dudley-do-right." She expressed with certainty that he would have tried to shield others from harm, a sentiment echoed by a survivor who recounted that Scharf helped a woman on an escalator just before he was shot.
The assailant was 19-year-old Robert Hawkins, who indiscriminately fired upon shoppers and employees with a rifle, killing eight people before taking his own life. The victims, Gary Scharf among them, were remembered as honorable and loyal individuals whose loss left a profound void in the lives of their families and friends. In the aftermath, the community mourned the victims of the tragedy that abruptly and violently ended the lives of innocent people out enjoying a holiday season afternoon.
