This page is dedicated to a very special young man...my son. It has only been a few months since we lost our precious gift from God, and this is very hard for me to sit and write this but it is something I HAVE to do...for me, for Shel, and for anyone that has a child. There is no pain greater than the pain of losing your child. It may seem strange to some because you will probably catch me writing some of this in the present tense, but in my heart Sheldon is still very much alive and will be with me always.

Sheldon was a unique young man, and I am not saying that because he is mine, he touched a lot of people with his beaming personality and love for life. He graduated from Pinkerton Academy in Derry, NH...class of '97 at the age of 17. He was a good student, always A's and B's and into woodworking and building trades. He loved using his hands and imagination, he never ceased to amaze me with his creative talents. He was a die-hard hockey fan and loved to play the game, be it on ice or roller blades, put a hockey stick in one hand and a puck in the other and he was in his own little world. No matter what it was he attempted he gave it his "all" and nine times out of ten he succeeded. It was his dream and ambition to build houses, there was nothing Shel was afraid of trying, the bigger the challenge the better. He had such a zest for life, you couldn't help but to love this kid.

In November of '97 we decided after 12 years of living back East it was time to go home....originally we are from the Midwest. Troy, my oldest son was going to college in FL. and on his own now, Sheldon had graduated and we wanted a little better way of life, a little easier and a little more crime free atmosphere. Shel wasn't real crazy about moving, all he had really remembered was NH. But....he came with us and he decided maybe it was going to be pretty cool living in KY. He had a temporary job until spring when he planned to either go to California, and work for his Uncle who also builds houses, or he would get hooked up with a construction outfit here. He saved his money, bought himself a car, a Talon, he HAD to have just the right color and year, nothing else would be acceptable. He was so proud of that car, he had saved so hard for the down payment and looked so long just for the right one. He was working at Papa John's Pizza here in town....delivering pizzas....and was making real good money, he worked hard and as many hours as he could get. Sheldon had no problem making friends, everyone he met liked him and he liked them. Shel struck up a very unique friendship with a girl from work, they were so much alike, up until now he didn't care about girls unless they could play hockey.

On March 1st... a little after 12:30am I received a phone call from the local hospital here in town. All they would say is that there had been an accident and we needed to come to the hospital. I was dumb struck, I knew something had happened and it was serious.... a car accident.....or a robbery..... NEVER in my wildest dreams did I expect what happened when we arrived at the hospital. I remember seeing the EMT's and a couple of policemen and hospital personnel going in and out of these double doors. After what seemed like hours, but was in actuality was only minutes, the Dr. came out and over to Sheldon's father and me and told us Sheldon had been stabbed numerous times and although they did all they could he was gone. All I can remember are the screams and cries that both of us couldn't help but to let out. That night was the worst night of ours lives....

Sheldon was murdered....it was a senseless and uncalled for act. The monster that did this (and I am being nice when I call him that) is in the county jail waiting for his punishment. Because of the trial pending and due to start in Oct. I can't finish this....but I promise as soon as I can, the events that took place that night and the outcome of the trial will be in print on a linking page for anyone and everyone to see. I owe that to Sheldon and to anyone that has children. If I can reach just ONE parent then I have maybe helped save another, NO one deserves this kind of pain. We ALL need to remember to cherish our time with OUR children ALWAYS.

PS: The trial was scheduled to start Oct.12, 1998 and we were informed on Oct.9th of a delay until Feb. 1999.... So we wait another four months and pray that justice will be done.

UPDATE: Will justice EVER prevail? Once again trial was scheduled for Feb.8th...we were told on the 5th that there is yet ANOTHER delay until March! Will this nightmare ever end, will we ever see this "Monster" pay for ruining our lives? I am beginning to wonder.

UPDATE II: March 10,1999 the trial is over the verdict is in....there was NO justice ...Below you will see the link, The TRIAL, there you will find testimonies by witnesses and the MURDERER himself, David Nicholas Riley...Public Reactions to the verdict and half-assed  Explanations by two of the 12 naive jurors to why Nick basically got away with a pre-meditated murder. 

IF YOU WANT TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER...... MOVE TO NELSON COUNTY, KY