1 week Ago By Amy Maginnis-Honey
FAIRFIELD— The annual Children's Memorial Flag Day, held at the county Department of Health and Social Services building, commemorated young lives lost to homicide, suicide, abuse and neglect, with approximately 50 people in attendance. Those gathered on Friday included county staff on the front lines, local representatives and community members, including two youth. They were told the event should serve as a powerful reminder of the children who have been lost and their stories that ended too soon.
Emery Cowan, director of the Health and Social Services, contemplated what she wanted to share. Her conclusion, "We shouldn't be standing here." She took over the post in November and was accompanied by her daughter, London Cowan, who will be 10 in May.
London shed a few tears during the event. The county, in 2024, received 3,397 calls regarding child welfare issues. Ninety-two children were removed from their homes.
Last year, the county lost nine children, one to suicide, one to homicide, five to abuse and neglect and the remaining to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Solano County Supervisor Cassandra James told her sons, while dropping them off at school, about the event. She encouraged them to have conversations with their classmates on the issue.
"It strikes a chord," she said, adding there is a name and face for each of the victims. "We will not be silent, we will not not accept violence." Solano County District Attorney Krishna Abrams noted the absence of Candy Pierce, who was the executive director of Court Appointed Special Advocates of Solano County for 14 years.
Pierce died Aug. 21 of complications from Covid. "She loved the children in Solano County," Abrams said.
The day also served as a reminder of Abrams' friend who took his own life when they were in high school. His birthday was April 29. "We can all agree one child lost is one too many," she said.
Her office sees too many young lives lost, she said, including ones to accidental fentanyl poisoning. "There's nothing worse than a parent burying their child," Abrams said, noting the recent conviction of Marvin Ray Markle for the 1982 murder of Deanna Lynn Johnson, 14. A moment of silence, in Spanish and English, wrapped up the memorial.
Participants were encouraged to pick up paper dolls and write messages on them. They will be displayed at the memory garden, below where the flag flies. April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month.
The Children's Memorial Flag Day is on the last Friday in April..
