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TOOELE — A mother who recently experienced the heartbreak of losing a child in an accident is joining the calling for compassion for April Suwyn, whose 11-month-old daughter died Friday after being left in a hot car.
The death of Skyah Suwyn continued to stir strong emotion Monday among many Utahns. Many have expressed a broad range of feelings, but this story hit close to home for Darlene Kelly.
“You never want to imagine ... it’s probably the worst thing that could ever happen,” Kelly said, referring to the loss of her 5-year-old son, Giacomo, a week before his sixth birthday.
“He heard the trash can truck and he got really excited. My daughter and him; they got really excited,” Kelly said, recalling the summer day that changed their lives forever.
Kelly said her kids always stayed on their small street. But on June 6, the chain of events came together like unfortunate pieces of a puzzle: a new garbage truck driver veered from the usual route and Giacomo, for the first time, rode his bike around the corner.
Related:
Boy dies after being hit by garbage truck
Police say Giacomo Riley Kelly, 5, of Tooele, was hit and killed during an auto-pedestrian accident Friday, June 6, 2014.“The actual driver usually goes straight, but this driver turned," Kelly said. "Because Giacomo didn’t know, that’s partly why he got run over."
After the accident, Kelly received words of love and support, but she also read negative comments that broke her down.
“It makes you feel like you’re a horrible mother,” she said.
Still, Kelly knows her son’s death was just an accident. Over the past couple of months she has found support from good friends like Annie Culley, who also lost a child.
In September 2012, Culley's unborn daughter died at 25 weeks gestation. The baby had cytomegalovirus, or CMV, a common virus that can affect anyone.
“I didn’t have an accident, but I did contract a virus and I did blame it on myself. The virus attacked the baby,” Culley said.
I want her to know that it wasn’t her fault, that she shouldn’t feel guilty. She should forgive herself, because the reality is Heavenly Father used her as a tool to get her little daughter back.
–Darline Kelly
Culley now spends time raising awareness about CMV, and she and Kelly have started an organization called “Giac’s Army,” which raises supplies for kids in need.
“I need to know he didn’t live in vain and there is a purpose on his death, and a lot of people have been blessed with it,” Kelly said.
“I can’t fathom what Darlene’s going through," Culley said. "She can’t vouch for what I’m going through, but it’s the same thing, we both lost a child, and the same with the mom in St. George."
Kelly said people shouldn’t be so quick to judge April Suwyn. Nothing is more painful than a mother’s guilt and grief, Kelly said, and the reality is tragedy can happen to even the best parent.
“I want her to know that it wasn’t her fault, that she shouldn’t feel guilty. She should forgive herself, because the reality is Heavenly Father used her as a tool to get her little daughter back,” Kelly said.
