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Candlelight Vigil Held For Greenburgh Boy, 4, Who Drowned

This story has been updated.

From left, Carolyn Sumpter, Jayden's grandmother, with his parents Andre and Tabitha Morrison.

From left, Carolyn Sumpter, Jayden's grandmother, with his parents Andre and Tabitha Morrison.

Photo Credit: Provided
Jayden Morrison

Jayden Morrison

Photo Credit: Provided

GREENBURGH, N.Y. -- The grandmother of the 4-year-old autistic boy from Greenburgh who wandered off during a holiday visit to the family's vacation home in South Carolina said a candlelight vigil was planned for early Saturday evening.

The vigil, at the Pool House which served as a search command post in the Hidden Lakes neighborhood of Little River, S.C., will honor Jayden Morrison of Fisher Lane in the Town of Greenburgh.

Jayden wandered off about 5:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve. His body was found Friday in a nearby pond. 

Funeral arrangements are being made in New York, the family said. 

He is survived by her parents, Andre and Tabitha Morrison; his grandmother, Carolyn Sumpter; his twin brother, Jordan; and a 3-year-old sister, Kelsey.

His mother had gone shopping and left her three children at the home with their grandmother.

Sumpter, who regularly watched the boy at his Greenburgh home where she lived with his parents, said minutes after the mother left she noticed the front door was ajar and the boy was missing.

"We've always been in a gated situation," Jayden's father told reporters Thursday afternoon after he arrived in South Carolina from New York. "We knew he was a wanderer when he was younger, but he was always in an enclosement. We never put him in a position to go out and freely wander."

First responders, dive teams, K9 units, helicopter crews and more than 100 neighbors joined the search to find the missing child. The pursuit to find Jayden on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day felt necessary, some volunteers said.

The local Horry County Sheriff's Department posted this message on its Facebook page:

"As the sun has set on a very difficult day here, Horry County Sheriff Phillip Thompson and the men and women of the Horry County Sheriff's Office grieve for the family of 4-year-old Jayden Morrison.

"Things in life change so very quickly and none of us are promised tomorrow. Having that in mind, hug and kiss your children a little extra tonight. Tell them how special they, tell them you are proud of them, just love them more than you ever have. Put whatever you may have going on in your life aside, count your blessings and remember how fortunate you are.

"Tonight, not only do we think about Jayden's family, but all of those families who have had a child called home far to soon. The Horry County Sheriff's Office cares about each and every one of you and is honored to serve you. God Bless you all."

 

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