Funeral Held For Murdered Duncan Family

A touching memorial service was held in Duncan for three members of the Hruby family, who were brutally murdered last week.

Sunday, October 19th 2014, 11:01 pm

By: News 9

A touching memorial service was held in Duncan for three members of the Hruby family, who were brutally murdered last week.

There was hardly a dry eye inside First United Methodist Church in Duncan. Loved ones packed the church to remember the tight-knit newspaper family, who meant so much to the community. People from all over Oklahoma came to pay their respects.

"Their whole family was very positive to our community so everyone's pretty upset," said Duncan High School junior, Dez Lewis.

The memorial service was filled music, prayer and heartfelt remarks made by close friends.

"We've known them all these years and just adored them. I was just telling Tinker's dad, I said you know, when I first met Tinker, she was just as cute as her name and we're very sad about the whole situation," said longtime family friend, Marion Cary.

The lives of the three family members were cut short last week when the bodies of 50-year-old John Hruby, 48-year-old Tinker Hruby, and 17-year-old Katherine Hruby were discovered inside their Duncan home on Monday.

Alan Hruby, 19, was arrested and accused of shooting all three.

"It's hard to know something like that, like how it happened, you know? Very tragic," said PeeWee Cary, who hired as a photographer at the Duncan Banner in the sixties by John Ruby's grandfather.

Publishing newspapers was in the Hruby family for three generations. John oversaw The Marlow Review. His wife Tinker was the crime reporter, and daughter Katherine helped deliver the paper.

"Heartbreak, you know she supposed to be at prom with us. She was supposed to graduate with us, but she'll be there with us in spirit," Lewis said. "But she was really excited about going to Heaven and always talked about God. So I feel like that was her overall, where she wanted to be so I feel like she's happy."

Katherine's classmates at Duncan High School say news of the death of the bubbly, beautiful teenager sent shockwaves through the school.

"She was like everything to me, she meant a lot to me," said freshman Reese Beeson.

Beeson played volleyball with Katherine and says she was her mentor.

"She was the center like of the whole entire team. She would always like try and get us to work our hardest. If I was going through something really bad, she would be there for me," Beeson said.

‘Hard working' is how people described Eagle Scout and businessman John Hruby. Kindness defined the loving and charitable Girl Scout leader in Tinker, which rubbed off in the unforgettable smile of the team jokester in Katherine.

"We're all pretty devastated, and it's sad for us all. It's a big loss," Beeson said. "We don't really have any spirit, but we will bring it back next year. We'll have it back. She will always be there with us."

The family's longtime minister at First Presbyterian Church, Rev. Kathy Ellen Vineyard, conducted the service. She said the family will be deeply missed, but their legacy will continue to live on.

Prosecutors in Stephens County have charged Alan Hruby with three counts of first-degree murder. Investigators think he murdered his family so he would be the only heir to the family's money.