Let This Be the Turning
In memory of three lives—and the better world Melissa and Mark Hortman believed we could build
The caskets containing the bodies of Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were placed in the center of the rotunda of the Minnesota State Capitol. Between them sat an urn—small, unadorned—holding the ashes of their golden retriever, Gilbert. Trained by Helping Paws to become a service dog, Gilbert never finished the program; he was simply too affectionate. Instead, he found his purpose curled at the feet of the Hortman family, padding beside them on neighborhood walks, and resting in the quiet corners of their life together.
When the family was gunned down in their home during the night, Gilbert was also struck by multiple bullets. FBI agents rushed him to Allied Emergency Veterinary Service in a desperate attempt to save his life. The veterinary team immediately began stabilizing him—administering pain relief, fluids, and collaborating with specialists to assess his condition. They described Gilbert as sweet and gentle and could tell by his demeanor that he was a companion who was well-loved.
Despite their efforts, Gilbert’s injuries were too severe. Surrounded by care, Gilbert was gently euthanized.
I wept throughout the live-streamed funeral service for Melissa and Mark Hortman. I didn’t know Melissa personally, but as a Minnesotan, I sure knew who she was. The loss is devastating—for our state, and even more so for her family and friends. The words to describe the feelings that rise in me get stuck in my throat. It will take time to move through this. I can’t stop thinking about their children, Sophie and Colin, losing both parents on Father’s Day weekend. Images of their friends keep surfacing—along with concern for the interwoven circles of community and service that surrounded them.
Will this change us?
Will it open our eyes, soften our hearts, and help us find our way back to one another?
Have we had enough yet—enough division, enough violence, enough dehumanizing one another?
Maybe one way to honor Melissa, Mark and Gilbert is to begin again—with more kindness, more courage, and a deeper commitment to each other. Melissa believed in the power of common ground. She gave copies of Getting to Yes to new lawmakers, hoping to foster a culture of listening and principled compromise. She believed in win-wins—in the possibility that we could all walk away whole.
It’s my hope that we will allow their memory to guide us toward the better way they believed in.