Victims of homicides remembered in vigil
Rows full of family members, sitting tightly together as names and images of a loved one they lost to homicide were displayed on the screen at the front of the room.
The Yuma County Victim’s Right committee hosted a National Day of Remembrance Vigil for murder victims at the Yuma County Main Library. September 25 marks the 12th year of the National Day of Remembrance nationwide.
For many gathered there, the memory of a loved one that has departed stays forever in their minds, but for many, the pain from their loss is like a wound that just doesn’t seem to heal.
Susan Johns is one of those mothers that is still grieving the loss of her 20-year-old son, Bryan Johns.
Bryan was killed in a car crash in Somerton back in March 2011 when he rode in a car, driven by his close friend, while under the influence after a night out in San Luis Rio Colorado, Son.
With tears in her eyes, Johns retells the pain and ache she has endured for the last 8 years, but more so how she uses her experience to help families that recently lost a loved one.
” We’re here today to remember him and to help other families with the newness of missing someone they loved ” said Johns.
Among those families in the room was the family of Clarisa Medina, the woman that was killed by her ex-boyfriend in a Somerton parking lot. 13 On Your Side spoke with her family, but they declined our request for an interview as it is still a bit too soon for their grieving family.
Displays plastered with images of victims lost to senseless acts of violence were raised in memory of the victims. One, in particular, honored the victims whose cases have now gone cold.
The case of Rhonda Fortney is one of the oldest cases that has now gone cold, dating back to 1969. Fortney who was found dead outside of her Orange Avenue apartment keeps getting colder and colder by day, as Yuma Police make yet another attempt to hopefully crack the case.
Other victims remembered, included the family killed in the La Mesa Street murders back in 2005.
” We are family members that have lost loved ones, ” said Johns. ” Each person griefs different, your journey is different, your grief never goes away you just learn how to adapt your everyday life with how you’re feeling. ”
The vigil is an act of kindness from those that work tirelessly to bring justice to the families of victims, but also a reminder to them that there is a full support system in the community.
” It’s learning how to say ‘I’m not okay’, ” said Johns. ” You just need time to yourself and you need to be good to yourself and know how to reach out ”
