Candle Light Vigil News thus far...

by Xandria 3 Replies latest jw friends

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  Xandria

  The Vigil went very nicely, the message got out and we had good media coverage. From 9, 14, 6, as well as the Charlotte Observer, the Spanish Paper, the Herald. As I am writing this right now, Channel 14 is showing the footage from the vigil. They and Nine are the best! Channel Fourteen is a 24 hours a day and they repeat the story over and over through out the day. They used a lot of footage and the pictures hit home. Channel 14 may put it in the clips a day or so from now. They do that with some stories.

  Marbely Mezza's brother Ariel, his wife and children were present. Angie (Ariel?s Daughter) was very excited to see the photo we had of her family, she stood there touching the face of her aunt, and cousins, pointing to each saying ?Look papa! They have photos of Tia, Denia, Denise and Jairo!? It was hard to see her reach and touch the photo caressing each face, because we know that she will never be able to touch her Aunt?s face or play with her cousins ever again. Ariel has been so distraught about these deaths and is glad to see something positive come out of this loss. He was glad to see someone care; especially after all they have been through. He is angry at the Witnesses he doesn?t understand or cannot believe that these are people that once called his sister and children a part of their flock. I mean where were they?! They certainly ran and hid. Literally.

  One of the camera men, who knows my husband and I, well from the cemetery issue and other things we have been involved in, asked a lot of questions. He had tears in his eyes, because he was the one who filmed the smoldering building after the murders and it hit home to him. Mark, was surprised to learn of my connection to the religion and he told me anything they could do to help they would. He felt very strongly about it. He stated he will never forget filming that crime scene and knowing children died needlessly~ all because abuse and it being silenced.

  I really feel that this is one step forward the future. Here are the links to the stories that are out right now.

  X
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  kls

  Xand thank-you for the up date on this vigil and please continue to post with more up dates.
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  Undaunted Danny

  Jehovah's Witnesses refuse to assist in family's funeral ...
  Kentucky Lake Times, KY - 19 minutes ago
  ... The Meza family were members of the Rock Hill Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses. The children -- Jayro, 5; Denise, 8; and Denia, 14 -- died Aug. ...

  Candlelight vigil for 3 murdered children

  Jehovah's Witnesses refuse to assist in family's funeral arrangements
  
  A national support group for sexually abused children held a candlelight vigil Thursday to honor three slain children from York County in South Carolina.
  
  Several people holding candles participated in a service the National Guard Armory. It was sponsored by silentlambs (silentlambs.org), a support group for abused children in "religious institutional settings."
  
  The Meza family were members of the Rock Hill Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses. The children -- Jayro, 5; Denise, 8; and Denia, 14 -- died Aug. 9 before a fire engulfed their home. Authorities say they were slain by one of their parents -- Marbely or Jose Denis Meza -- who died in the fire.
  
  Denis Meza had been arrested three weeks before on charges he molested Denia. York County Coroner Doug McKown said she'd also been raped within five days of her death.
  
  A national spokesman for the Jehovah's Witnesses organization said that Meza "confessed" to church officials about sexually abusing his little girl.
  
  According to some of the vigil participants there were no Jehovah's Witnesses present at the memorial service. "It's been very hard for our family to have coped with these deaths. ... I still do not know why their church was not here grieving here with us tonight," said Ariel Zeledon, Marbely Meza's brother.
  
  Bill Bowen, director of silentlambs and a former member and elder of the cult from Calvert City, Kentucky, attended the vigil and announced the establishment of the Meza Children Memorial Fund.
  
  "We don't know all the facts yet in the Meza family case -- what church elders knew about Denis Meza's abuse of his daughter and how long it took them to turn that information over to the authorities," said Cindy Fondren who helped organize the vigil. "But we do know there are many documented court cases in which church elders did not turn information about alleged sexual abuse involving church members to DSS or the police."
  
  The Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses has refused to comment about the Meza family. A nearby Christian church helped arrange the funeral and raise money for the family since no assistance was offered by their Jehovah's Witness organization, according to participants at the vigil.
  
  On the World Wide Web:
  
  Dead girl's dad sues Jehovah's Witnesses - man suing the Jehovah's Witnesses, claiming they contributed to his daughter's death by encouraging her to avoid life-saving blood transfusions, said today his lawsuit is for her and for his family...
  
  Father sues Jehovah's Witnesses, hospital over teen's death - In a statement of claim, Hughes alleges that Bethany's mother and other Jehovah's Witnesses misled his daughter about the merits of blood transfusions...
  
  Jehovah's Witnesses stay home election day - In this most political of seasons, where small percentages of votes in key states could prove decisive, the Jehovah's Witnesses are staying ...
  
  Watchtower Bible and Tract Society - Similar to many other cults, Jehovah's Witnesses deny the deity of the Holy Spirit....Since its very inception, the Watchtower has made false prophecies about the end of the world. Predicting the end in one form or another for the years 1914, 1918, 1925, 1975 and 1989 has caused its membership to maintain a steady upward trend...
  
  Watchtower Society's Occult Association - repeatedly used the writings, of a known spiritist Johannes Greber, as a scholarly support for their beliefs...
  
  --Article and links submitted.
  
  Click Here to comment on this story
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  Xandria

  Thank you for posting that Undaunted Danny.

  Posted on Fri, Sep. 10, 2004

  Candlelight vigil honors 3 slain Rock Hill children Lambs delivered with tips on reporting abuse DAN HUNTLEY Staff Writer ROCK HILL - A national support group for sexually abused children held a candlelight vigil Thursday to honor three slain children from York County. About 40 people holding candles participated in a service at the Rock Hill National Guard Armory. It was sponsored by silentlambs (silentlambs.org), a support group for abused children in "religious institutional settings." The Meza family were members of a Rock Hill Jehovah's Witnesses church. The children -- Jayro, 5; Denise, 8; and Denia, 14 -- died Aug. 9 before a fire engulfed their home. Authorities say they were slain by one of their parents -- Marbely or Jose Denis Meza -- who died in the fire. Denis Meza had been arrested three weeks before on charges he molested Denia. York County Coroner Doug McKown said she'd also been raped within five days of her death. A national spokesman for the Jehovah's Witnesses church said that Meza "confessed" to church officials about sexually abusing his daughter, but the official stressed that church officials turned that information over to York County authorities. "It's been very hard for our family to have coped with these deaths. ... I still do not know why their church was not here grieving here with us tonight," said Ariel Zeledon, Marbely Meza's brother. Bill Bowen, director of silentlambs and a former Jehovah's Witnesses elder from Calvert City, Ky., came to York County this week and announced the establishment of the Meza Children Memorial Fund. "We don't know all the facts yet in the Meza family case -- what church elders knew about Denis Meza's abuse of his daughter and how long it took them to turn that information over to the authorities," said Cindy Fondren, a Jehovah's Witnesses member from York who helped organize the vigil. "But we do know there are many documented court cases in which church elders did not turn information about alleged sexual abuse involving church members to DSS or the police." The Rock Hill Jehovah's Witnesses Church has refused to comment about the Meza family. Another Rock Hill church helped arrange the funeral and raise money for the family. X