Volunteers add wheelchair ramp to paralyzed shooting victim's home

GASTONIA, NC (WBTV) - It's been a rough holiday season for one Gastonia family. Greg McKee, a husband and father, was shot outside of a Cabarrus County rest area on the way back from a Thanksgiving trip.

McKee was left paralyzed below the thighs. Shooting suspects Darren Manuel and Terrell Thomas were taken into custody in the weeks following the incident.

Manuel was charged with assault with a deadly weapon and attempted robbery. If convicted of those charges, he could spend over 26 years in prison.

Thomas was charged with attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury. He was arrested by the FBI in Queens, New York.

McKee has undergone treatment and physical rehab at the hospital. His family received a huge outpouring of support from their local church, Flint Groves Baptist. That support continued to come in this week.

Several volunteers from AON Hewitt and Love INC gathered at the McKee family home Friday for a construction project. The crews worked to build a ramp in front of the McKee family home.The ramp is just one part of the plan to make the home more accessible for Greg McKee.

"It's important to give back regardless of your situation," said Marcus Chapman, a business intelligence analyst for AON who was volunteering Friday.

Chapman and his colleagues used saws, nail guns, and a load of lumber to construct the new ramp. They spent several hours working on the project Friday.

"It makes me have pride in our community," said Chris Howell, a pastor of students at Flint Groves Baptist Church.

Howell said he had grown to know the McKee family through church and has regularly spoken to Greg since the accident. He said he has spent a lot of time helping to renovate the family's home since the tragic shooting happened in November.

"Humanity is still good. There are a few bad apples out there, but watching these guys go at it for a family they know nothing about is exciting," said Howell.

Though no imminent threat was present Friday, Howell explained that safety has become a concern in aiding the McKee family.

An affidavit revealed that the shooting suspects planned to assassinate McKee. The document states that Darren Manuel contacted his girlfriend, Keyona Desiree Powell while in jail and told her to contact Terrell Thomas and tell him that McKee "had to go and he didn't care when or how it happened, but he had 'to go'."

"We've had to adjust some security measures within our church and we've adjusted some security measures at the house," said Howell.

The volunteers said they weren't worried about their safety Friday, but were cognizant of the situation

"It does worry me that the sense of continued violence would continue like that, but we're here to accomplish this mission and goal," said Chapman.

Howell said the goal is to have the McKee family home completely renovated by Tuesday afternoon.

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