Memorial for murder victims spotlights resilience of human spirit

On Wednesday I attended a service in memory of several members of a family originally from Ansonia who were brutally killed.

It was the first anniversary of the tragic event in which five people and an unborn child were murdered in West Virginia. The suspect later committed suicide.

The service at Wakelee Memorial Funeral Home in Ansonia was certainly sad,  but it also was inspiring. As I sat near the grieving relatives I couldn't help but be in awe of their strength. The tragedy they have endured is unimaginable. A recording of the hymn, "Amazing Grace," brought many of them to tears.

I learned these brave young men, twins Jacob and Christopher Hudson, 18, and their brother Richard Hudson, 24, have been working hard to move ahead in life. They are going to school, working, and making every effort to deal with their tragic circumstances.

And it was clear to me that their father, Clifford Hudson, and their uncle, Eric Hudson, are extremely proud of them and their accomplishments.

Wakelee Memorial Funeral Home director John Stanley Zaleski presented Clifford Hudson with a medallion that contains the fingerprints of his two slain children, Katrina and Kevin Hudson, as well as the footprint of his unborn granddaughter, who was to be named Alexis.

Clifford Hudson said he was "ecstatic" when Katrina told him he was going to become a grandfather. 

Keepsake medallion features fingerprints and a footprint.

Zaleski said because “the gravity of the loss was so great,” he teamed with David Gordon of Meadow Hill Corp. in Illinois to create a special keepsake medallion for Clifford Hudson. The charm, imprinted with the victims’ fingerprints, is part of a line of charms called Thumbies, available through Meadow Hill, Zaleski said.

I wish all the Hudson family members the best as they seek to get on with their lives, while they work to keep their loved ones' memories alive.