WEST CHESTER, Ohio — On Saturday, people gathered to say their final goodbyes to the six-year-old West Chester boy who drowned after wandering away from home.
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According to a previous News Center 7 report, 6-year-old Joshua Al-Lateef Junior, who had autism and was nonverbal, wandered away from his home around 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 20.
He had been dropped off earlier in the day by his bus driver and was with his adult sister before he was reported missing from their apartment complex, our news partners at WCPO-9 TV reported.
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The search lasted more than a day, with thousands of people joining in to help find the boy.
After a 28-hour extensive search of the area, divers found Joshua’s body in a pond near his building.
“This is the hardest thing that I’ve had to do in my life,” Jonisa Cook, Joshua’s mother, said.
Joshua’s funeral was held Saturday, Nov. 30, and those who attended showed unity and symbolism by wearing red, WCPO-9 TV reported.
“We asked for the color red because that’s what my son gave me and showed me: what love is. Unconditional love,” Joshua Al-Lateef Senior, Joshua’s father, said.
Cook and Al-Lateef Sr. reminisced on their child’s life while sharing the life lessons he provided.
“Because he couldn’t talk, so I learned, he made me learn and practice the words to use to get through to him. I want us to practice the same things to get through to one another,” Al-Lateef Sr. said.
Both parents are hoping to turn the tragedy into change by starting a Change.org petition to push for a new alert system specifically for missing children with spectrum disorders.
They call it the “Joshua Alert.”
The family shared their appreciation for the community for their search for Joshua and asked for everyone to keep his memory and legacy alive.
“Don’t let this moment be a moment, let this be a lifetime,” Al-Lateef Sr. said.
You can donate directly to the family by visiting this website.
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