[Boomer]

Dear TOTVers,

Please do not let this turn into one of those judgmental, flippant threads that too often happen here.

The people of this young man's neighborhood in Cincinnati have tied blue and white ribbons around their trees to welcome Otto home. Driving through there brings tears and a reminder........

Young people do not always make the best decisions, no matter how smart they are. Otto was salutatorian of his high school class at a public school known to be one of the best in Cincinnati. He then went on to UVA which has among the highest of admission standards. An academic young man, brimming with promise, made a young mistake.

Beautiful promise destroyed by unspeakable evil.

Who among us has not made a mistake.

Who among us has not hoped and prayed that the children we love will get safely through those young years -- those years when they begin to leave us to enter their lives as adults -- but not quite there yet.

I hope those who choose to post here will stop and think and try to imagine the heartbreak those parents must endure.

Truly,
Boomer