Post by MXB on May 30, 2007 23:38:37 GMT -5
The seats at the table were empty, but the places were set and surrounded by reminders of lives cut short by crime.
A journal listed a young woman's schedule for the week that she was killed. A birthday card was covered in soot from a fire set to hide the killing of a mother and daughter. Pictures showed children left without a father because of a drunken driver.
Family members of crime victims put these and other mementos Sunday at a dining table placed in The Oaks Mall to honor their relatives. The table was surrounded by nine seats symbolizing area residents killed by violent or alcohol-related crimes.
"It is a reminder of who is missing," said Gretchen Howard, a victim's advocate for the State Attorney's Office.
As part of National Crime Victims' Rights Week, the exhibit will stay in the mall near the entrance of Belk's until Thursday. It will then be brought to Crime Victims Memorial Park for a second event honoring the lives lost and relatives left behind.
Belinda Herndon, whose 24-year-old daughter was killed by a lethal dose of anesthesia, said the presence of dozens of victims' friends and relatives demonstrated the impact of violent crime.
"It's a ripple effect," she said. "It goes on for generations."
Tears running down her face, Herndon put her daughter's appointment book at an empty place at the table. Next to the book, she set name tags from her daughter's jobs at the Florida Museum of Natural History and Gainesville Health and Fitness Center.
David and Donna St. John, whose 17-year-old son was killed in a vehicular homicide, said the event showed them they are not alone.
David St. John said he hoped the exhibit would remind the public of the human cost of crimes.
"It's a good way to get people to realize it could be their family," he said.
For the family of Heather and Kira Radcliffe, the exhibit had another purpose. The 28-year-old woman and her 6-year-old daughter were killed in December, their home set ablaze to cover up the crime.
No one has been arrested for the killings. Heather's father, Bob Radcliffe, said he hoped the exhibit and a $10,000 reward would help lead to an arrest.
"We want to get this nasty person off the street," he said.
At the places set for Heather and Kira, their family and friends put charred plates pulled from their home.
A blackened birthday card sat next to Kira's place and a soot-stained work shirt was placed over Heather's chair.
Others also remembered their relatives with reminders of the lives they led. Cedric Lee, whose brother was killed last year in a robbery, said the strawberries and pecans placed on the table were his favorite snacks.
Bobby and Janice Smith, whose 27-year-old son was killed by a drunken driver, clutched photos of the two children he left behind. Bobby Smith said they hoped the exhibit would show people that drunken driving can be an act of violence as much as shooting someone.
"Too many people have to suffer through tragedies like we are," he said.
Herndon said the event gave her the opportunity to meet other crime victims' parents for the first time. She said she felt comfort from speaking to the mother of Christa Leigh Hoyt, one of serial killer Danny Rolling's victims.
"She talked to me and told me what I feel is perfectly normal," she said
A journal listed a young woman's schedule for the week that she was killed. A birthday card was covered in soot from a fire set to hide the killing of a mother and daughter. Pictures showed children left without a father because of a drunken driver.
Family members of crime victims put these and other mementos Sunday at a dining table placed in The Oaks Mall to honor their relatives. The table was surrounded by nine seats symbolizing area residents killed by violent or alcohol-related crimes.
"It is a reminder of who is missing," said Gretchen Howard, a victim's advocate for the State Attorney's Office.
As part of National Crime Victims' Rights Week, the exhibit will stay in the mall near the entrance of Belk's until Thursday. It will then be brought to Crime Victims Memorial Park for a second event honoring the lives lost and relatives left behind.
Belinda Herndon, whose 24-year-old daughter was killed by a lethal dose of anesthesia, said the presence of dozens of victims' friends and relatives demonstrated the impact of violent crime.
"It's a ripple effect," she said. "It goes on for generations."
Tears running down her face, Herndon put her daughter's appointment book at an empty place at the table. Next to the book, she set name tags from her daughter's jobs at the Florida Museum of Natural History and Gainesville Health and Fitness Center.
David and Donna St. John, whose 17-year-old son was killed in a vehicular homicide, said the event showed them they are not alone.
David St. John said he hoped the exhibit would remind the public of the human cost of crimes.
"It's a good way to get people to realize it could be their family," he said.
For the family of Heather and Kira Radcliffe, the exhibit had another purpose. The 28-year-old woman and her 6-year-old daughter were killed in December, their home set ablaze to cover up the crime.
No one has been arrested for the killings. Heather's father, Bob Radcliffe, said he hoped the exhibit and a $10,000 reward would help lead to an arrest.
"We want to get this nasty person off the street," he said.
At the places set for Heather and Kira, their family and friends put charred plates pulled from their home.
A blackened birthday card sat next to Kira's place and a soot-stained work shirt was placed over Heather's chair.
Others also remembered their relatives with reminders of the lives they led. Cedric Lee, whose brother was killed last year in a robbery, said the strawberries and pecans placed on the table were his favorite snacks.
Bobby and Janice Smith, whose 27-year-old son was killed by a drunken driver, clutched photos of the two children he left behind. Bobby Smith said they hoped the exhibit would show people that drunken driving can be an act of violence as much as shooting someone.
"Too many people have to suffer through tragedies like we are," he said.
Herndon said the event gave her the opportunity to meet other crime victims' parents for the first time. She said she felt comfort from speaking to the mother of Christa Leigh Hoyt, one of serial killer Danny Rolling's victims.
"She talked to me and told me what I feel is perfectly normal," she said