Tina Ruiz describes her father, Ralph Copeland, as a man who loved his family, congregation and flying.
She says he and the plane crash survivor, Aaron Voreis, were friends at the church he helped to build.
New Harvest Ministries in Brownsville will honor its fallen minister during regular service time on Sunday.
Action 4 News spoke with Tina Ruiz and asked what she knew about the tragic accident.
“They were trying to make a landing and there seemed to be a problem with the right landing gears, so they took another swing around and he said that my dad was very calm. They knew that they were going to crash land. And, the reason he had crashed it into the fence was because he didn’t want to hit the building,” said Tina Ruiz.
Family and friends of Aaron Voreis gathered inside the waiting room of Valley Baptist Medical Center in Harlingen on Friday.
A Valley Baptist Medical Center spokesperson told Action 4 News that Aaron is expected to make a full recovery and is doing fine.
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