The Bever property will officially be owned by the City of Broken Arrow on Tuesday.
Since 2015, the home has been a reminder of five grisly murders, then months ago, a damaging fire. Now, the city hopes to take the rubble and turn it into a positive part of the community.
The lot currently sits vacant in a quaint Broken Arrow neighborhood. The sense of peace there is something folks around town have been looking forward to for quite some time.
“It was quite a bit of brutality," Sgt. Stephen Garrett with the Broken Arrow Police Department said. "It’s something we don’t see on a daily basis, or even a monthly or annual basis.”
It was a scene straight from a horror film, five family members slaughtered by two brothers, Robert and Michael Bever. Only two survived.
"It was just something that never goes away, the images in your mind never go away," Sgt. Garrett said.
First responders are still haunted by the gruesome discovery.
"Sometime I'll just be laying in bed and be thinking of some of the things you’ve experienced as a police officer and first responder," Sgt. Garrett said. "Those things will come back into your mind.”
The Bever property is stained by it’s reputation, known to many as the house of horrors. Plagued by tragedy, it was eventually set on fire, and bulldozed, but it’s scars still remain. These are scars the City hopes to heal with a memorial garden.
"I think its a place of healing for everyone involved," Sgt. Garrett said. "I think it’s a continual process of healing. It’s something people will probably never get completely over.”
The city council hopes the garden will help neighbors and and first responders move beyond the tragic memories, and focus on a new beginning.
"They don’t have to continue to see the home and they can see something... a much better picture when they come here," Sgt. Garrett said.
The city of Broken Arrow is now moving forward to keep the past, in the past.
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