DAYTON — A memorial is being planned at Ruskin Elementary School for 7-year-old Hershall Creachbaum.
Police said they found his body under the McClure Street Bridge in Dayton. His mother, Ashley Johnson, and her boyfriend, Michael Kendrick, face charges related to his death.
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Classes begin next week for students at Ruskin Elementary. Bridget Lowe said many students will pass by Hershall’s memorial on the way to school. She believes seeing all of the balloons and pictures will be hard for them.
“This year, school won’t be the same without Hershall, but we will make sure justice is served and we will have a memorial at Ruskin Elementary, permanently there for Hershall forever,” Lowe said.
“This year, school won’t be the same without Hershall, but we will make sure justice is served and we will have a memorial at Ruskin Elementary, permanently there for Hershall forever,” Lowe said.
Lowe told News Center 7 in July that she was not sure what she was going to do, but she was going to find a way to keep Hershall’s story alive.
“We got this memorial rock that will be permanently installed through concrete. I don’t know exactly where yet, but it will be placed at Ruskin Elementary,” Lowe said. “My son was so excited to know that he did something great.”
News Center 7 called Dayton Public School to see if they could provide any details on when Hershall’s memorial will be built, and where it will be located at Ruskin.
The district never returned the call, but we got ahold of an email the principal sent to Sweet Retreat, an ice cream shop in Dayton that raised more than $1,200 for Hershall.
Sweet Retreat said they worked with the principal at Ruskin Elementary to use that money for a memorial bench.
“You know, this little boy did not deserve anything. He probably went through his whole life, so the best we could do is make sure he’s enjoying and gets peace and justice. Definitely need to be served with everyone who is involved,” Lowe said.
On top of the memorial at the school, Lowe said they want to change the name of the McClure Street Bridge to the Hershall Creachbaum Memorial Mural.
There is an online petition people can sign. Visit the petition here.
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