Some of those who helped search for a 4-year-old Jefferson City boy last year gathered in the cold and rain Wednesday evening to show their ongoing support for his family.
The group Missouri Missing was instrumental in bringing volunteers together to try and help authorities look for Darnell Gray, whose body was found Oct. 30, 2018.
The vigil was held at Washington Park - the same site as the vigil held on the night after Darnell's body was found. Washington Park is also not far from Darnell's home on Buena Vista Street, and it was also the focal point for volunteers and authorities to gather as they searched for him.
Darnell's father, Kijuanis Gray, came to the ceremony, but he told reporters he was too emotional to say anything.
Missouri Missing is a nonprofit group looking to provide support for families who have missing loved ones. The group's executive director, Marianne-Asher Chapman, said she will always be amazed at how many people came out to try and find the boy.
"It's important to not let (Darnell) be forgotten, and he deserves to be remembered," Chapman said. "He's our community child. He was an innocent baby."
Wednesday's vigil was held a day after the Cole County Grand Jury indicted a Jefferson City woman with second-degree murder in causing Darnell's death.
Court records show Cole County Prosecutor Locke Thompson filed what is known as a superseding indictment in the case against Quatavia Givens, 26.
She had originally been charged with one count of child abuse for allegedly abusing Darnell while babysitting him. She pleaded not guilty to that charge.
Givens initially reported Darnell was missing to authorities, saying she thought he might have been abducted, which triggered the week-long search that ended with authorities finding the boy's body last October. Authorities said Givens later admitted she had injured the boy while babysitting him, and an autopsy showed he had suffered multiple injuries caused by blunt force trauma.
Her trial is scheduled for July, and a jury from Johnson County will hear the case.
Missouri Missing members Mary Williams-Cole and Kathy Mueller have attended every court proceeding involving Givens' case. They have also been in contact with Darnell's mother who lives out of state.
"She's lost her son, and she's devastated," Williams-Cole said. "That's why we're going to stand in for her family. We're Darnell's family, now."
Chapman said the group wants to come up with a way to honor Darnell's memory through a program that would benefit the community. Williams-Cole said she has talked with officials at Preferred Family Health and is trying to get churches together to bring awareness to the needs of young people in the community.
"We're not talking a once-a-year thing," Williams-Cole said. "We need this to be ongoing so young people know that if they have a problem, they need to let us know so we can help them."
Pastor Dave Phelps who is the director of Student Ministry for Lincoln University for the Concord Baptist Association led the group in prayer and said this was a tragic event and it should make us realize the brevity of life.
"A lot of us didn't know each other when this happened, but through Darnell we came together, and now we are part of a much bigger family," Williams-Cole said.