Palm Desert Event Honors The Lives of 37 Children Lost In 2011

With her hands lifted upward to let go of a white dove, Cathedral City resident Janet Janes whispered the name of her son, Christopher Straughan, who died just over a year ago of a prescription drug overdose.

Janes released the dove and a basket full of a half-dozen more during the "Lights for Little Lives" event, which is put on by the Unforgettables Foundation, at on Saturday, Dec. 31.

After releasing the birds, two women read some of the names of 37 children who died in 2007 in the Coachella Valley and were helped by the foundation. That's four more than last year, according to organizer Tim Evans, who is a chaplain and co-founder of the Redlands-based foundation.

"It is primarily for families who lost children, but also it is to remember the lives of our children," Evans said.

Events like this one provide some healing for Janes, who started the foundation Mothers Against Prescription Drug Abuse following Christopher's April 25, 2010 death, at the age of 19.

"One thing a parent feels is they don't want a child forgotten. Every life isn't insignificant," Janes said.

Janes, with her friend Kathy Creedon, have worked tirelessly to raise awareness about needless deaths from prescription drugs. The women have even enlisted the support of Rep. Mary Bono Mack, R-Palm Springs, who did not attend Saturday's walk around the park.

Janes' grief still shows in her face as she talks about her loss.

"I think about him everyday," she said, visibly fighting back tears.

She was joined by 15 other Coachella Valley residents mourning the loss of neighbors and family members.

One of the women, Virginia Hummel, 52, of Palm Desert, said she lost her 25-year-old son on Feb. 4, 2006 in a motorcycle accident in Camarillo, Calif.

"Grief is a really tough, tough thing," Hummel said, adding that she came to try to encourage other parents and share information about her book "Miracle Messenger."

Hummel shared her message of hope and that loved ones do exist after death, and signs exist in the world that they are OK.

"If they (grieving parents) are willing to open themselves to the possibility of something more, there is comfort that there is love and hope," Hummel said.

She shared her story of healing with the group, by explaining she first found peace when a humming bird landed on her hand in 2009.

"I felt the air around me change. I could tangibly feel a shift, and suddenly I felt my son there," Hummel said with a smile on her face.

She said that she has since opened herself to signs, and feels her son is telling her he is still there, making the pain a little easier to bear.

"It's an unnatural order to lose a child. A parent is supposed to go first," Hummel said.

Deacon Fernando Heredia of in Palm Desert said a prayer at the end of the event before the group walked around the park.

"Our children have not left us. It is so hard to deal with death ... God is a God of the living, not of the dead," Heredia said as words of encouragement.

The Unforgettables Foundation helps out with funeral costs, offers counseling support and anything else the family may need.

It has been in the Coachella Valley for 12 years, but Saturday's event was the second in the desert.