About Christian Lodge
Christian Lodge, known as “Woody” to his friends, was settling into fatherhood and looking forward to his coming wedding.
His son, Connor, is almost 4 months old; Lodge was to marry his fiancée Jaclyn this summer.
And he was beloved by friends and family, who struggle to understand what brought a man they knew as gentle and loving into an apparent fight that ended his life.
Christian "Woody" Lodge
“He was just as sweet as can be,” said his mother, Connie Swackhammer of Gahanna. “He was ridiculously likeable.”
Lodge was 28 and lived on the Northeast Side with his son and fiancée.
“He was a crazy, outgoing kind of guy,” said Jeremy Russo, Lodge’s best friend since their high-school days at Westerville North. “He was very trustworthy, and a very good friend to me through good times and bad.”
Lodge was excited about the baby and looking forward to his marriage, said Russo, who was on his way to Columbus from Salt Lake City February 8th.
“It was a new start in life. He felt like that was his calling. It was time to settle down.”
Russo and Swackhammer said Lodge wasn’t the fighting type.
He liked to work out, loved his three bulldogs and was a big fan of the Cleveland Browns and the Buckeyes, Swackhammer said. His habit of wearing an Ohio State cap with a block O earned him the nickname Woody.
He recently was laid off from his job with Nature Stone, she said.
Police are asking anyone with information about the case to call the homicide squad at 614-645-4730 .
Christian “Woody” Lodge, who was to be married this summer, died of head injuries.
If anyone knows anything, no matter how small please post to this blog and we’ll keep your identity anonymous.