A murder-suicide in Whispering Pines, North Carolina, has left a quiet community heartbroken and confused.
Police in the small town just north of Pinehurst — a historic golfing community surrounded by pine trees and built on sand — found husband and wife Amber Jensen, 47, and David Jensen, 47, both dead from gunshot wounds on Sept. 6.
David Jensen, an Army veteran, had not showed up for work that day. Authorities were called to their residency after a neighbor found them deceased inside their home.
"Both victims were deceased upon our officers’ arrival and both victims sustained gunshot wounds," Whispering Pines Police Department Chief Jason Graham said in a press release at the time. "The investigation has determined this incident to be a murder suicide."
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Police also determined that there was "no ongoing threat to the community" after finding the deceased couple.
"Please keep this family and our community in your prayers as this was a tragic situation for everyone," Graham said.
Whispering Pines community members expressed shock in learning about the couple's deaths on social media.
Amber Jensen ran an interior design company called "Fine Design," specializing in kitchen and bath remodels.
The "about" section on her website said the 47-year-old mother of two as a "works with homeowners, builders, architects and interior designers to collaborate on beautiful spaces."
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"I love a bright and airy design with a touch of warmth. How about you?" Amber Jensen had written in a July 18 Facebook post.
Her husband was honored with the highest civilian award for valor in April 2014. David Jensen was an Army contractor with Wexford Group Inc. who served with the U.S. Army Asymmetric Warfare Group as until 2013.
He was awarded the Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Valor, which "recognizes government employees and private citizens who perform an act of heroism while risking personal safety in the face of danger," for his service in Afghanistan in 2012, according to the U.S. Army website.
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While he was deployed in Afghanistan as an operation advisor, he and his company were preparing to fly out of an airfield on a partnered air assault operation when one of the two aircraft they were set to travel in was struck by a rocket and went up in flames.
Jensen immediately began evacuating both American and Afghan service members, returning to the burning aircraft several times to save more people before it was entirely engulfed in flames, according to the Army.
He then provided medical assistance to those who were wounded in the attack.
"Being honored at the Pentagon Hall of Heroes is remarkable," Jensen said at the time he was honored with the award. "I never would've imagined that in my entire life. So it's a huge honor, and I'm very blessed to be here to be a part of it, and very blessed to be a part of the Asymmetric Warfare Group."
