Part 1

The High Country is an amazing place to live. Just a short drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway provides wide-sweeping mountain views and gently rolling pastures. Thousands of tourists pour into our community each autumn to witness the mountains come alive with color as the leaves change. We have dozens of incredible hiking trails and fishing spots to enjoy during the warmer months and ski slopes to enjoy during the winter ones. The beauty of the Blue Ridge mountains is truly incredible, and yet, what makes a place desirable is the community of people that live here.

If the beauty of creation is what draws people to the High Country, it’s the people of Watauga, Ashe, and Avery counties that make them want to stay. The small-town feel and warmth of our communities are what make it one of the friendliest places to live. It is the caliber of people’s character and faith that makes a community worth living in and in our stories today, we will see how the lives of two people have been forged in the crucible of heartache and tragedy. I have had the pleasure of sitting down with Paige Mast-Blevins and David Ward - two members of our community whose testimonies have been woven together to display God’s love and grace in a time where that seems impossible. These stories stem from the tragic loss of three of the High Country’s finest Law Enforcement Officers – Deputy William Mast, Sargent Chris Ward, and K-9 Deputy Logan Fox. Today, they have a message that we all so desperately need to hear.

Paige Mast-Blevins

***Every May, Hunter and Paige take a trip to Washington, D.C. to attend the National Law enforcement Candlelight Memorial Service***

On July 26, 2012, tragedy struck the High Country when Deputy William Mast was shot and killed while answering the call of a domestic dispute. In a matter of minutes, the life of his wife, Paige, was forever altered. Before this horrible night, Paige and William were a normal couple who lived a normal life. They started dating when William was thirteen years old and enjoyed a decade-long relationship, having dated for seven years and married for three. In their third year of marriage, there was also electricity in the air as they eagerly awaited the birth of their first child, Hunter.

On the day of the shooting, there was no sense of pending disaster. It was a normal day, much like any other day, but as Paige reflected, she could see many blessings that she calls God-things. The first God-thing was in the way their final day together had started. Being nearly full-term, Paige was craving a Bo-berry biscuit from Bojangles, so as any dutiful husband would do, William picked some up on his way back from the gym, then spent some time at the table with Paige chatting and catching up on the morning routines.

When it was time for William to go to work, Paige waved goodbye at the door, which William typically didn’t want to do, because that sort of goodbye felt permanent. Paige did, however, and then went about her day.

***Paige’s late husband, Deputy William Mast***

Looking back, that day was a blessing. What would have been a normal day of workout routines and daily chores ended up being a day for them to connect one final time. The two spoke on the phone around ten o’clock at night when William had a break in his schedule, then Paige drifted off to sleep until she would be pulled from her bed by a life-altering knock at the door.

At 3:00 am, Paige was awakened by police officers knocking on her front door. When she answered and saw Aaron Billings (William’s best friend and co-worker), she immediately knew that William was gone and that her worst nightmare had become reality. Looking back, however, even in that very moment where she received the worst news of her life, she could say that having her cousin, Staci Norris, there to support her was a God-thing. Staci’s husband, Seth, was also there having been called in by the Sheriff’s department as a chaplain. No one knew they were cousins, so Paige recognized their presence on her doorstep as a blessing from the Lord. She also has a large dog who is not a fan of human men. Where he would normally start barking and get into the alpha-male mode, he was silent that night and later during the gathering of family and friends at their home shortly after. Even such a small detail of her dog being uncharacteristically quiet and peaceful was a blessing. It was a God-thing.

Once the news was delivered, Paige had to make a trip to the ER. She did her best to hold it together while she was there, but she reached a tipping point and had to retreat into the bathroom. It was all too much, all she wanted to do was sit and hide because coming out and walking back into that room meant facing the reality of her husband’s death. The grief was becoming too overwhelming. By God’s grace, however, she eventually gathered her wits and walked back out, carrying on with the support of her family, friends, and relationship with Jesus.

***William’s son, Hunter, is able to honor his late father by visiting the National Law Enforcement Memorial in Washington, D.C. and seeing his father’s name engraved into the memorial wall.***

Just seventeen days after William’s death, her son Hunter was born. Even though it was crushing to know William wasn’t there to meet his son, Paige knew that God gave her Hunter so she could endure these dark days that seemed to have a sorrow-filled gravity that held her in bed. God knew she needed her little boy and her boy needed her, and Paige recognized this dependence as another display of God’s grace over their lives.

As her family, her law enforcement community, and friends continued to rally around her, she eventually found solid footing and began to focus on helping others and being encouraged by other God-thing moments. Moments like looking past the painful retreat to the bathroom to avoid reality, to the reality of the gospel of Jesus being preached and people accepting Him as their Lord.

In the months leading up to William’s death, Paige remembers having candid conversations with him about their faith. Paige grew up in a Christian household. She accepted Christ as an adolescent and became serious about her faith in December of 2008. William grew up knowing about God but as the two of them discussed the nature of their faith, William started to realize that he had not truly accepted Jesus as Lord. Praise God he made that profession of faith just twenty-five days before he was killed. Because of that profession of faith, Paige can have full assurance that both she and Hunter will see William again.

***A newfound strength; Paige was able to continue on through the darkest days because of Hunter. He needed her, and she needed him too.***

Any amount of words will fall short to describe the comfort and hope that brings. But, even with this, God did not cease to pour out his peace and compassion.

In November of that same year, William’s police car took on a new owner and happened to drive by one day while Paige was looking out the window. Just seeing his car drive by their house filled her with peace and was just another way that God spoke to her, saying that William was alright and they were going to be as well.

As time marched on, God gave Paige the honor of helping others who have gone through similar hardships. One by one, she was given opportunities to speak at CIT (Crisis Intervention Training), NC COPS (Concerns for Police Survivors), and built relationships with other widows to comfort them as one who has been where they are and understands their struggles.

“Just seeing his car drive by their house filled her with peace and was just another way that God spoke to her, saying that William was alright and they were going to be as well”

*In 2012, a 5K called Hunter’s Heros was established to support and remember all public safety members and their families. At the 8th annual race in 2021, Hunter was able to join in and run as well.*

The blessings continued to come as Hunter would tell his mother about the dreams he had of his dad, how he would take walks with him and talk with him. This happened, not once, but on many occasions. Paige even had one dream, after a bout of worry and concern over the multitude of questions floating around in her head. In her dream, she sat across the table from William and he told her to ask all her questions and he would answer them. She proceeded to do just that, and though she could not remember a single answer he gave when she woke up, he had given her answers and that was all she needed to move forward.

Now, nearly a decade after this horrible event, God has blessed her and Hunter with a new family member. Paige was remarried to Kody Blevins, who has given her and Hunter a new chapter in life. They have also expanded their family with the birth of their daughter, Harper, in 2018. God has provided a man that doesn’t want to come and erase the memory of a previous husband and father but rather wants to ensure his memory lives on, encouraging Hunter to think of William often.

As our discussion ended, Paige reminded me that she is still not whole. A piece of her will always be missing, but as she recounted the last nine years, she recognized that she was blessed to have gone through this season of life and has been able to see fruit from the trials. God was and still is using this time in her life to bring about good things in her life, the lives of those she can speak into, and to ultimately bring glory to His name.

As I interviewed her, I was encouraged by just how many times Paige gave the glory to God by mentioning all the little God-things and using terms like “God saw fit to give me.” How many of us, if we are truly honest with ourselves, could come out on the other side of a tragedy like this and proclaim the goodness of God like that? It is truly remarkable to find such a strong faith that can look at such a terrible event and point to the power of God’s goodness.

Lights that Shine in the Darkness: Paige Mast Blevins

Part 1