Stealing Memorial Day memorabilia is grave robbery

On May 28, 2003 my wife and I experienced the worst possible horror in life; we lost our son Layne Hyrum Piippo. Layne was buried on top of his great great grandmother Thelma Dillin. You might wonder why I am bringing up this tragic event more than four years later.

Let me explain: Every year, my wife and I get one opportunity to spoil our little boy that we lost. The only thing we can do is place some small toys and a little red wagon at his grave side. I only wish I could explain the agony parents experience knowing that their son will never play with these toys, but just putting them next to him seems to ease the pain.

This year, we proceeded just like years previous, but the end result was incredibly heart wrenching and has upset our entire family. Some of these items that we place buy Layne's grave were stolen from the Grand View Cemetery. What kind of a person would rob grieving parents of the one time of year that they get to feel like they can do something special for their lost child? I ask whoever did this how can you sleep at night knowing that the peace we normally get from celebrating his birthday by placing his toys by his grave was ripped away when you stole his toys?

Layne's great-great-grandma Thelma also had a wagon stolen from her grave. It was lovingly planted with her favorite flowers in her favorite colors. Has our society's respect degraded this far, that we can not even consider graves sacred places anymore?

If Layne's toys were stolen from his grave for another grieving family that lost a young child, my family, all of my family gives you our love and sorrow, for we know your pain. We ask only that if you do need Layne's toys just ask, they would have been freely given, and we could have healed the emotional scars we bare together. If Layne's toys were stolen for a prank, we simply ask you to please return them, because they are one of the few things we can do for our son. Stealing from a grave is not funny, cool, or anything else, it is simply against the law. The physical loss from this tragic event is minor, but the emotional healing that we enjoy during Layne's birthday, one time a year by giving him his toys, has been stolen from us this year by whoever stole Layne's toys.

Sincerely,

Robin Piippo and Family

Belfield, North Dakota