LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- With his camera in hand, Tyler Gerth was doing what he loved when he was killed Saturday night covering protests in downtown Louisville. His family now hopes his passion will live on and spark the change he so desperately fought for.
"The last text message I sent to him is, 'I know God has big plans for your life, and I know he's going to do big things through you,'" said Brittany Loewen, Gerth's sister. "And we could have never dreamed that this is what would have come less than a week later."
Gerth was the baby of this family, the only boy with two older sisters: Loewen and Tiffany Hensley. They describe him as the peacemaker.
"We fought constantly growing up, and he was always the one who found middle ground and was able to see things from both of our perspectives," Loewen said.
Ultimately, that was what brought him to the protests: his desire for peace.
"He wanted to be on the right side of history, that he really wanted to capture it, that he wanted to show his work through history and that his images would be forever engraved and now they will be," Hensley said.
Gerth was never drawn to photographing people, choosing instead to document nature, architecture and animals. But when the city he loved erupted, Gerth felt pulled to capture the faces, the fury and the fight.
"It's just incredible to see his perspective and to get to hear his heart behind it," Loewen said.
He didn't just want to document history but support change.
"He really wanted to make that change for my kids and for any black and brown kids growing up," Hensley said. "He wanted to know that the system would be changed for them."
The night of his death, his family begged him not to go, but their brother insisted. His last text message to Loewen described a moment when he was marching with protesters Saturday night.
"That's when he said, 'I know it's scary. It can be scary,'" Hensley said. "But he was so brave and so fearless, and he wanted to be out there for my kids. That's what he said in his last message to me, that he wanted to be the change. He wanted to be part of the change for them and for black and brown children all over to really see that change."
As they mourn the little brother who brought peace to their family, they hope his pictures and his passion will live on and spark the change he so desperately fought for.
"That I guess is our ask of everyone, is to not let that fire die out," Loewen said. "Not let what he was fighting for die, and that action can be as small as having a conversation with someone who doesn't agree with you."
Gerth will be remembered in a private memorial service Friday, which will be streamed live on the St. Raphael the Archangel Catholic Parish Facebook page. A public celebration of life will be held at a later time. The family is also starting a memorial fund in his honor.
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