Cynthia Ramos’ family have a moment of silence as they gathered to grieve and remember her during a candlelight vigil in front of her home at the Green Oaks Mobile Park in 2009. A vigil on Aug. 6 of this year will commemorate the one-year anniversary of her death. Glenn Moore/Tracy Press
One year after her mom, Cynthia Ramos, was stabbed, bludgeoned and strangled to death by Robert and Jorge Morgan inside her Tracy home, Barnes is hosting a fundraiser breakfast to help boost a fledgling charity called Children of Murdered Parents Inc., an idea spawned by her ordeal.
“After the murder, I began searching for answers, support, anything to help me make sense of things,” she wrote to the Press. “I quickly found that there was not a lot out there. More like, there is nothing out there for children left behind when a parent is murdered.”
She said that the organization will provide ongoing peer support and resources to families that have endured a loved one’s murder, especially younger children.
“I have a responsibility to my mother and to all the parents who have been taken from their families to fill the gaps in the systems, and help children get through the trauma and move toward becoming a stable adult,” Barnes continued.
The day before the Aug. 7 pancake fundraiser at Applebee’s, on the actual one-year anniversary of Ramos’ death, her family will remember her life with a candlelight vigil.
The event begins at 6 p.m. Aug. 6 at the clubhouse of Greenoaks Mobile Home Park, the mobile home park in which Ramos lived.
She was murdered in her home there on Aug. 6, 2009, by the Morgans. The domestic partners admitted in February to killing Ramos as well as to robbing her home, and they received a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Barnes said she’s organizing the vigil not just for her mother, but for the families of all murder victims, she said. Barnes added that the vigil is especially to remember the five homicide victims in Tracy in 2009 — Sandra Cantu, Naim Bey, Clayton Riggins and Spencer Sampson, in addition to Ramos.
Donations can be sent to Kimberly Elisan-McKinney, P.O. Box 3502, San Leandro CA, 94578.
At a glance
• WHAT: Pancake fundraiser for Children of Murdered Parents Inc.
• WHEN: 8 to 10 a.m. Aug. 7
• WHERE: Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill and Bar, 3060 Naglee Road
• COST: $5
• INFO: www.inmemoryofcindyramos.com
• WHAT: Candlelight vigil for Tracy’s 2009 homicide victims
• WHEN: 6 to 9 p.m. Aug. 6
• WHERE: Greenoaks Mobile Home Park clubhouse, 2929 N. MacArthur Drive
As I told TracyGirl, if you decide to come to either function, and I hope you do, PLEASE come over and say hello! I really would love to meet you!
God Bless You, still in state of awe after reading your comment! Beautiful and so right!
It is evident many will be inspired by what you said! Wonderful bridging cause!
CN
I am so touched by your comments. I have had others say kind things like you did, or say things like... "you're so strong, I don't know how you do it". My reply is always the same... "I don't have a choice, I just do it". In the eulogy I wrote for my mom, I also said... that I will live each day for the rest of my life honoring my mother... and I meant that. There are days I don't wanna get out of bed because my thoughts and emotions get stuck in a bad place. But I am no good there. No good to myself, to my family, to my mother, and to the new world of survivors and the hardships they face.
I am/we are not the only survivors out there. There are countless. In 2008, there were 14,180 murders reported (2009 numbers are not in yet). Assuming each one of those victims left behind 3 close family members, not to mention extended family and friends, that would amount to 42,540 survivors... AND THAT IS ONLY FOR ONE YEAR!!
So there are potentially, thousands... or hundreds of thousands of people walking around out there in my shoes. Some of them may never "recover" from this type of tragedy. And unfortunately, the ones with the highest disadvantage for "recovery" are the youngest survivors... the children of murdered parents. Some lose their only parent, or go to other family members, or to foster care. Some act out and follow the wrong path, and without the guidance of their parent- combined with the traumatic event, I can see why this would happen.
I can ignore what my eyes have been opened to, or I can do what my mother taught me and that was to "Stand up for all that is right". In doing so, I/we will create a "meaning" for our mother's murder and begin our own healing as well.
Thank you again TracyGirl- for your kind words of encouragement. If you can come to the vigil on Augut 6th 6pm-9pm at Green Oaks Mobile Home Park, or the pancake beakfast at Applebees Tracy on August 7th 8am-10am , please come say "HELLO". I would love to meet you. :)
Blessings To All,
Christina
Im soo very proud of you for transfering your pain and trajedy into a positive contribution to society. You are a role model for this community and you will set the tone for those who reside in this community. Rather then venting your anger out to the public, the people, complaining and etcetera you have invested your energy into being a productive member of society. you are tough and you are on track. and yes one must love our mothers first as the day shall come when one cannot look back. Thank you for contributing to the community where I grew up, where I still have family and where i my heart is.. MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND GIVE YOU THE STRENGTH AND COURAGE TO CONTINUE TO GOOD WORK AND TO STAY ON TRACK AND MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE COMMUNITY.
I can also tell you that EVERY one of my siblings would love to meet you, as you touched all of our hearts with your kindness and compassion. If you can't, we understand... but we are sure hoping! :)
Love to you and yours,
Christina
I'm so glad that those two are going to spend the rest of their lives in separate prisons.
With Children Of Murdered Parents, we hope to connect people with support services. We will provide the youngest and most vulnerable with an outlet and a way to build their own self esteem, by providing activities such as sports, music, or the arts. We will give children incentives to do welll in school. We will work with schools and communities to aducate others on the aftermath of homicide, and the lifelong effects survivors are forced to live with. We want to work with schools and communites to bring awareness to the educators and peers of kids who are touched by this, so that the educators may have a clearer understanding of what the child may be going through and that other children gain a deeper sense of the value of another human life.
We are learning as we go. But we DO absolutely know that we have to do our part to make things easier for others, especially those that are at the disadvantage of being minor children. Too many of them end up being statistics on the wrong side of the tracks and in some cases, if there were someone to work with the child and help them through it all, maybe their lives would end up, at the very least, stable... at the very best, successful.
Although our mother's murder was extremely brutal and inconceivably evil, we have learned to count our blessings. I myself, had my mom for 39 years. Her body was never "missing", her killers were apprehended form the very beginning, and our court experience was far shorter than others- ending in the best possible outcome(other than death). We are BLESSED, and I've found others who are not so fortunate. There are kids out there who have had their parents murdered at very young and tender ages. Some of them are uprooted from the home that they ahve always known. Some go to other family members. Some end up in foster care. But NO ONE follows these kids to see that they have dealt with the trauma itself, let alone guide them trough their adolescence and into their adulthood. I cannot even fathom where I would be, had this happened when I was 2, or 6, or 12. I am old enough to have my feet on the ground. Sadly, others aren't.
The website for the organization, www.compsonline.org is under construction and will be up and running very soon. There will be links to donate there. In the meantime, please send donations to:
Children Of Murdered Parents Inc.
c/o Kimberly Elisan-McKinney
PO Box 3502
San Leandro, CA 94578
Thank you everyone for supporting us, and children of murdered parents everywhere.
Doors 17- I sure hope you can make it. I would love to give you a huge hug for all the support you have shown our family this past year. :)
Lam75- Thank you too, for your support.
Cferreira- I appreciate my mom now more than ever! I have so many woulda, shoulda, coulda's. But I can't dwell there... only go forward and honor my mama everyday. Also, as I have... I will continue to tell others to love your mama's, hang out with them, go eat, go shopping, catch a movie, go for walks in the park, get mani/pedis, laugh and enjoy them. We don't know what we have until it's gone and the impact a mother makes on their children is immeasureable. My mom, Cindy Ramos, will always be my hero! :)
Not only your mom/family is proud of you, but the Tracy Community thanks you for what you are doing.
I also would like to have the address, maybe post it somewhere? Just a thought! Thank you Doors 17...
I am so sorry for your loss. I do not know what I would do without my mom...
Thank you,
Very sweet of you Christina and I also think we need to work with the mind of murderers as well.
We wouldn't have to worry about children of murdered parents if we can straighten out the minds of these creeps. I know that is a little too much to ask, so thanks Christina for helping children in such a crisis.
It’s great to see your family taking your personal tragedy to help others. I’m sure your Mom is very proud of all of you.
For those of us who can’t make it, do you have address where we can make a donation ?