This article is 1993 THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL
THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL
WEST MEMPHIS MOURNS SLAIN BOYS
FUNERAL, VISITATION RECALL JOYFUL LIVES TRAGEDY CUT SHORT
Date: Wednesday, May 12, 1993
Section: Metro
Page: B1
Illustration: photo
Source: By John Beifuss The Commercial Appeal
Staff reporter Rob Johnson contributed to this story.
Edition: Final
Two Christmas holidays ago, jeweler John Mark Byers made a special ring for his adopted son.
The small, 14K gold circle is adorned with the hand-crafted image of a tiny, smiling worm, in honor of the ever-squirming boy nicknamed 'Wormer.'
"I knew, through the years, I could size the ring, make it larger," Byers said. "I hoped as he got older he could wear it, and maybe he could pass it on to his own son."
Today, 8-year-old Christopher Mark Byers will wear the ring during his funeral, his adoptive father said before attending a visitation Tuesday at Roller-Citizens Funeral Home.
This week, West Memphis officially mourns Christopher, Steve Edward Branch and Michael Moore - the three boys who were bound and killed some time after they last were seen together the evening of May 5.
The boys' submerged bodies were found Thursday in swampy Robin Hood Park near their homes in the northeast part of town.
Funeral services for Michael Moore were held Tuesday at Holy Cross Episcopal Church here. About 200 mourners filled the small church, including teachers, some two dozen children and family members. Michael, the son of Todd and Diana Moore, was buried in Crittenden Memorial Park in Marion, Ark.
West Memphis police detectives videotaped those who entered the church. Police said Tuesday that while they are pleased with the progress of their investigation, they now expect it will be a long haul.
"I think we're looking at a long investigation," Inspector Gary Gitchell said Tuesday. "It's moving along. We're going to solve it."
Mrs. Lou Cook, 35, who attended Michael Moore's funeral with her sons, said the shock of the murders hasn't worn off.
'It's just hard to imagine that something like this has happened in our small commnity, where almost everybody knows each other," she said. "It just doesn't seem real yet."
Cook, a longtime substitute teacher at Weaver Elementary School, said she knew all the boys, and they were good friends with her son, Jonathan Hedrick, 8.
"He said he didn't want to go to school Friday because his best friends had been killed, and he didn't have any friends left."
Aaron Hutcheson, 8, said he also lost his best friend in Michael. "We always played together."
Vicki Hutcheson, 30, Aaron's mother, said the boys had invited Aaron to accompany them the afternoon they disappeared, but she wouldn't let Aaron go out. She cried at the memory.
Rev. Fred H. Tinsley Jr., rector at Holy Cross, told mourners at Michael's funeral to stop blaming themselves for not watching out for the boys. "Such self-deprecation and blame at this particular time only serve to draw our attention away from why we are here . . . celebrating the gifts of Michael's life."
The murders continue to disturb West Memphis residents.
Charles Norris, 23, an ice cream truck driver for Frostee Treats, said even the popsicle business is at a standstill.
"On the east side of West Memphis, kids weren't even coming out, and if they did, parents were watching 'em from the window. I think everyone's suspicious of everyone."
He said his daily cruises of neighborhoods once frequented by children have been like visiting a ghost town. "There's no more pickup games of basketball, no kids tossing the football."
"My two little ones won't hardly leave the house," said Cook, whose father, W. T. Williams, was murdered five years ago in Memphis. "They don't want to be out of my sight at all."
She said on Mother's Day, the family had a fried chicken picnic in the backyard, "But as soon as that was over, they wanted to go back in the house."
Despite the fear, the murders have brought out the best qualities in some citizens.
Some parents volunteered to watch classes at Weaver in the afternoon, so that teachers could attend the funeral. "This is just an example of how our town's pulling together," said Sarah Kirkley, principal of the school where the three 8-year-olds attended second grade.
Services for Christopher Byers are at 1 p.m. today at Ingram Boulevard Baptist Church in West Memphis, with burial in Forest Hill Cemetery East in Memphis. He will be buried at the foot of his grandmother's grave, his father said.
Steve Branch will be mourned during services at 2 p.m. Thursday at Bradshaw's German-Aumon Funeral Home in Steele, Mo., with burial in Mt. Zion Cemetery in Steele.
THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL
WEST MEMPHIS MOURNS SLAIN BOYS
FUNERAL, VISITATION RECALL JOYFUL LIVES TRAGEDY CUT SHORT
Date: Wednesday, May 12, 1993
Section: Metro
Page: B1
Illustration: photo
Source: By John Beifuss The Commercial Appeal
Staff reporter Rob Johnson contributed to this story.
Edition: Final
Two Christmas holidays ago, jeweler John Mark Byers made a special ring for his adopted son.
The small, 14K gold circle is adorned with the hand-crafted image of a tiny, smiling worm, in honor of the ever-squirming boy nicknamed 'Wormer.'
"I knew, through the years, I could size the ring, make it larger," Byers said. "I hoped as he got older he could wear it, and maybe he could pass it on to his own son."
Today, 8-year-old Christopher Mark Byers will wear the ring during his funeral, his adoptive father said before attending a visitation Tuesday at Roller-Citizens Funeral Home.
This week, West Memphis officially mourns Christopher, Steve Edward Branch and Michael Moore - the three boys who were bound and killed some time after they last were seen together the evening of May 5.
The boys' submerged bodies were found Thursday in swampy Robin Hood Park near their homes in the northeast part of town.
Funeral services for Michael Moore were held Tuesday at Holy Cross Episcopal Church here. About 200 mourners filled the small church, including teachers, some two dozen children and family members. Michael, the son of Todd and Diana Moore, was buried in Crittenden Memorial Park in Marion, Ark.
West Memphis police detectives videotaped those who entered the church. Police said Tuesday that while they are pleased with the progress of their investigation, they now expect it will be a long haul.
"I think we're looking at a long investigation," Inspector Gary Gitchell said Tuesday. "It's moving along. We're going to solve it."
Mrs. Lou Cook, 35, who attended Michael Moore's funeral with her sons, said the shock of the murders hasn't worn off.
'It's just hard to imagine that something like this has happened in our small commnity, where almost everybody knows each other," she said. "It just doesn't seem real yet."
Cook, a longtime substitute teacher at Weaver Elementary School, said she knew all the boys, and they were good friends with her son, Jonathan Hedrick, 8.
"He said he didn't want to go to school Friday because his best friends had been killed, and he didn't have any friends left."
Aaron Hutcheson, 8, said he also lost his best friend in Michael. "We always played together."
Vicki Hutcheson, 30, Aaron's mother, said the boys had invited Aaron to accompany them the afternoon they disappeared, but she wouldn't let Aaron go out. She cried at the memory.
Rev. Fred H. Tinsley Jr., rector at Holy Cross, told mourners at Michael's funeral to stop blaming themselves for not watching out for the boys. "Such self-deprecation and blame at this particular time only serve to draw our attention away from why we are here . . . celebrating the gifts of Michael's life."
The murders continue to disturb West Memphis residents.
Charles Norris, 23, an ice cream truck driver for Frostee Treats, said even the popsicle business is at a standstill.
"On the east side of West Memphis, kids weren't even coming out, and if they did, parents were watching 'em from the window. I think everyone's suspicious of everyone."
He said his daily cruises of neighborhoods once frequented by children have been like visiting a ghost town. "There's no more pickup games of basketball, no kids tossing the football."
"My two little ones won't hardly leave the house," said Cook, whose father, W. T. Williams, was murdered five years ago in Memphis. "They don't want to be out of my sight at all."
She said on Mother's Day, the family had a fried chicken picnic in the backyard, "But as soon as that was over, they wanted to go back in the house."
Despite the fear, the murders have brought out the best qualities in some citizens.
Some parents volunteered to watch classes at Weaver in the afternoon, so that teachers could attend the funeral. "This is just an example of how our town's pulling together," said Sarah Kirkley, principal of the school where the three 8-year-olds attended second grade.
Services for Christopher Byers are at 1 p.m. today at Ingram Boulevard Baptist Church in West Memphis, with burial in Forest Hill Cemetery East in Memphis. He will be buried at the foot of his grandmother's grave, his father said.
Steve Branch will be mourned during services at 2 p.m. Thursday at Bradshaw's German-Aumon Funeral Home in Steele, Mo., with burial in Mt. Zion Cemetery in Steele.
