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Detroit church remembering longtime parishioner killed in house fire

Detroit church remembering longtime parishioner killed in house fire
Detroit church remembering longtime parishioner killed in house fire 00:53

(CBS DETROIT) - Following a fatal house fire on Friday, a Detroit church is remembering one of its longest-serving parishioners.

Katherine Hickman, 96, and her son Dirk Hickman lost their lives after a house fire early Friday morning.

Katherine Hickman's long-time church, St. Matthew's and St. Joseph's Episcopal Church, is remembering her legacy by marking her spot in the church where she sat every Sunday with a cloth and vase of flowers.

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St. Matthew's and St. Joseph's Episcopal Church is remembering Katherine Hickman's legacy by marking her spot in the church where she sat every Sunday with a cloth and vase of flowers. The 96-year-old was killed in a fire on Friday, March 24, 2023. Stacey Hickman-Jackson

"It's a testament to her strength that this was her church, these were her people," says Rector Anthony Estes.

Her daughter, Stacey Hickman-Jackson, says whether it was bible study or just about any church-based group you could think of, she had a hand in it.  

"My mother was a firecracker. A very spirited person, very active, she drove until she was 93, and prior to that, she as much as she could, would pick up people to bring them to church or take them home after church," Hickman-Jackson says.

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