National Missing Children Day Candlelight Vigil

Rockford, Illinois- Posters, photos and candles honored missing persons at Sinnissippi Park in Rockford tonight as part of National Missing Childrens Day. "They went all over the country, ya know, every lead they had," says Brenda Burgetti. Her father, Alvey Shelton went missing in the 1980s. Burgetti and others were at the park tonight to remember their missing family members and to remind people that others are still missing. "I was thinking about it all the time, where is he? I hope he`s alright," remembers Burgetti. Sheltons body was found ten years later. Brenda Bushear was abducted in 1997 from a Rockford bar; her family was at the candlelight vigil also. "I`m here for my sister and for everyone else who passed away and was murdered in Rockford," says her sister, Jannie Bushear. Right now in Rockford, there are 60 active cases of missing people dating back to the 1980s. Fifty-seven of those are children; most are runaways. "We have some pictures of people who are missing," says the organizer of tonights vigil, Melissa Lewis, "we hope that we can help people to find them." The Sheltons and the Bushears both say if you have a missing family member to never give up hope and to always keep looking. If you have any information on a missing person, please contact your local police department.