'He Died A Hero': Veteran Killed In Saint Francis Shooting Saved His Wife's Life

William Love was one of the four people killed at the Saint Francis Natalie Building one year ago. Love saved his wife's life after a man opened fire.

"Here was this horrible tragedy, but what I learned about him through this tragedy is what a hero that he was," said Whitney Allen, the Tulsa Police Victim Services Coordinator.

Love was a veteran who served nearly three decades in the Army and was at Saint Francis that day for his wife's doctors appointment.

Love knew his wife of more than 50 years couldn't run, so he protected her, with his life.

"He knew that she could not run and he put himself between those bullets coming through that door and his wife. And so he died a hero," said Allen.

Allen responded to the scene immediately and provided support for Love's family. She said Love was in the U.S. army for 27 years, served in Vietnam and did a number of tours in Germany.

She said on June 1, 2022, he made the ultimate sacrifice; an oath he took a long time ago.

"He lives his whole life and he serves our country but he died protecting the person he had been with most of his life," said Allen.

Allen said she remembers June 1 like it was yesterday. Her team was just leaving for the day when they started getting alerts on their phones about a mass shooting.

They went straight to Saint Francis, along with a team of victim advocates from the U.S Attorneys Office and Tulsa County District Attorney's Office.

They provided immediate support for the families of Dr. Preston Phillips, Dr. Stephanie Husen, Amanda Glenn, and William Love.

"By having the number of victim's advocates that we had, we were really able to cover everybody and not only have advocates at the scene, but also at the family reunification center, at the hospital and at the detective division," said Allen.

Allen said this was one of the worst, if not the worst case her unit has ever worked. She said mass shootings are different, because these victims were just at work, helping people, and felt safe.

She said despite the tragedy, it warmed her heart to see everyone in the Tulsa community wrap their arms around the victims' families.

"Everybody in the community wanted to help. 'What can we do? How can we help these families?' That was amazing to see that during this time of tragedy, that we were Tulsa strong," said Allen.