Parents Plan Memorial For Tori Stafford
Posted May 31, 2009 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Rodney Stafford and Tara McDonald last saw their beloved daughter nearly eight weeks ago.
Recently, police cautioned the family that they may never see eight-year-old Victoria “Tori” Stafford again.
Faced with that agonizing information, the parents decided to move forward with a public memorial service for the young girl. It will held at Calvary Pentecostal Church in Woodstock at 1pm on June 6, nearly two months to the day after Tori disappeared forever.
The third-grade student at Oliver Stephens Public School didn’t come home after classes on April 8.
Six weeks later, two people from her town of Woodstock were charged with her abduction and murder.
Despite one of the accused initially agreeing to help police, Tori’s small body still has not been found.
At first, Stafford and McDonald refused to plan a service until police had finished their search.
But as the hunt enters its 12th day, hope is becoming slim. Officers, including members of the Halton Regional police force, are looking through ditches and garbage dumps near Fergus, ON for any trace of the girl.
Roadways and lakes near Highway 401 were also looked over by crews but so far, they’ve turned up nothing.
Michael Rafferty, 28, and Terri-Lynne McClintic, 18, face charges of first-degree murder and kidnapping. McClintic received special permission to help investigators look for Tori’s body.
However, her information did not appear to help police and McClintic was once again put behind bars on May 24.
Rafferty and McClintic will be tried separately.
