After weeks of searching, questions and heartache, searchers and family members gathered Tuesday at Memorial Park in Fulton to remember Carl DeBrodie.
A large crowd of both those who knew DeBrodie and other community members lit candles as they prayed, sang and mourned together. DeBrodie's body was recovered April 24, a week after he was reported missing from a Fulton supported living facility.
"(We did this) for Carl, who didn't have a voice," said Shellea Young, one of the search party organizers who served as the master of ceremonies. "He has a voice now."
She encouraged those in attendance to push for changes in the system she believes let DeBrodie down. At the same time, she praised the community who gathered around him.
"I've really been affected by the community, by seeing people care," she said.
Evidence of that caring was tangible, both in the size of the crowd and by the painted rocks arranged in front of the memorial, which also included flowers, family photos and a lone teddy bear.
"I asked that the rocks be placed in the Memorial Park in these next several days leading up to the candle light vigil," Jesse Staats, who operates the Fulton Rocks! Facebook group, said. "I was approached by a member of Carl's family (who) said the home had gotten rid of all of Carl's belongings, and she hoped to find some of our rocks so that she and the family could have something to remember him by."
Young and others involved in the search for DeBrodie said it changed them, in one way or another.
Some, like search co-organizer Kimmy Bodle, found a new purpose. She and several of the searchers are organizing a rescue group, she said previously.
"I was always raised to help the community and take care of family," said Jeremy Cameron, who is joining the search team. "The community is your family, whether you like it or not. This has given me more drive."
The crowd swapped stories over food before the vigil, including a cake topped with the phrase "Justice for Carl!" and a firetruck. Members of the Fulton Fire Department also attended in one of their vehicles.
"He loved firetrucks," his aunt, Carol Samson, said.
She added she's very thankful to all the volunteers and donors, who included C&R Market, Mosers-Jefferson City, Backer's Potato Chips, Lee's Chicken, Bush's Flowers and several others.
As the Fulton Police Department and the Missouri Department of Mental Health conduct their investigations, the family will continue to wait.
"This is only part of the closure," John Summers, DeBrodie's uncle, said.