Tribute to newly arrived teens from China who have been missing for weeks
On the evening of October 17th, Feng Tian went out for a walk as part of her routine. Since then, no one has seen him.
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A candlelight vigil for Feng Tian, a 17-year-old who disappeared on Oct. 17 from the apartment he shared with relatives just three months after arriving from China, was held at 7 p.m. It will be held at Notre Dame de Grasse. Not far from where the young man was last seen.
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A memorial service will be held in the private parking lot at 5770 Upper Racine Road, on the southeast corner of Melrose Avenue and Upper Racine Road. Tricia Bartley, her NDG mother who organized the event and has young adult children, will speak. Sujin Nee, the missing boy’s mother, speaks through an interpreter. Peter McQueen, Project Montreal Trustee for the Côte des Neiges (Notre-Dame de Grasse) will also speak.
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The purpose of the event is to “show families that we are a strong community,” Bartley said.
Bartley said she contacted her family “after realizing the seriousness of the situation” days after Tian went missing.
“I decided to help them as much as I could,” she said. “If this were my child, I would want my community to move forward.
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“They are fighting a battle to tell their story. I did everything in my power to give them a voice.”
She spread the word about the missing youth through her social media accounts, prepared 150 flyers for companies to display, and posted some in the Saint-Henri, Snowdon and Côte des Neiges metro stations.
“I didn’t want anyone to forget his face,” she said. “I was trying to pay more attention to this family.
“We wanted people to know their stories. We wanted the communities they live in to know that we stand behind them and support them as a community.” said Bartley.
“This wasn’t a kid who just got up and left. He was a shy boy who was in many ways an introvert and didn’t have time to make friendships.”
Tian is 5 feet 11 inches, weighs 150 pounds, has black hair and black eyes. When last seen, he was wearing a black sweater and black denim his coat, with black and white sneakers.
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According to Bartley, he was enrolled in a language program at the Downtown YMCA. “He had goals and dreams of understanding the language and eventually becoming a police officer.”
On the night of October 17th, he visited a cousin who lived near Cavendish Street. He then headed east on foot to his Melrose Avenue home where he lived with his mother and his brother.
After returning home, it was customary to warm milk in the microwave for her mother, and walking was a daily routine. He left home with no wallet or ID, just his cell phone and house keys.
Security camera footage shows Tian walking east on St. Jacques Street around 9:40 pm.
His family has not seen him since.
Police are “deeply involved” in the case, but the family wants to do more and is hiring a private investigator, Bartley said.
She asked how a 17-year-old boy disappeared without a trace.
“Given his personality, this is a sweet boy. Kind, shy, and motivated,” she said. “If this were my child, I’d want everyone to see it and knock on every door.”
Bartley said Monday night’s event was intended as a “community gathering of support and solidarity.”
sschwartz@postmedia.com
Tribute to newly arrived teens from China who have been missing for weeks
Source link Tribute to newly arrived teens from China who have been missing for weeks
