SARANAC, Mich. — In just over a week’s time, Greg Slocum has lost his 18-year-old daughter Brooke and his unborn granddaughter — and buried both.
Now he says he’s ready to forgive the accused killer, seeking closure in a case that’s gained attention across the country.
“An amazing girl with an amazing smile and amazing spirit,” Slocum says of his daughter.
He says she’d brighten up every room with her kind heart and spirit – and a love for cameras and creativity.
“Out of so much tragedy comes so much hope.”
Greg says he won’t let Brooke and her unborn daughter’s death be in vain.
“She taught me a lot. It’s amazing what you can learn from your children if you just really listen,” he says.
Greg has been sifting through poems and drawings – learning a gut wrenching foreshadowing.
“She wrote down that she was actually going to be murdered,” he says. “She knew.”
But through the horror and hell of Brooke’s brutal murder, he says he’s found peace.
“It’s just a simple message of love and kindness in our hearts – to look out for one another.”
It’s a message from Brooke he wants everyone to learn. It’s a peace he says she’s brought him allowing him to forgive.
“I forgive Brady Oestrike for what he did because it’s not for me to judge. We don’t know the conditions in his life that made him create such a terrible crime,” he said.
Greg says that’s what Brooke would want.
“From that tragic death comes a new beginning – a new chance for a better tomorrow for all our children,” he says.
Slocum will be meeting with the FBI on Saturday. There are still a lot of answers he’s looking to get.
He says they’re planning a memorial benefit in August.
