Petition started to create a ‘Lily Alert,’ memorials sprout up around Chippewa Falls
By Parker Reed
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CHIPPEWA FALLS, Wisconsin (The Chippewa Herald) — The Chippewa Falls community is rallying together to mourn a girl whose life was taken far before her time.
When 10-year-old Lily Peters was reported missing on Monday morning, the Chippewa Falls community began sharing her image and description rapidly to try and find the young Parkview Elementary student. But Monday afternoon, that missing persons case took a devastating turn and became an active homicide investigation when her body was found.
And while the Chippewa Falls Police Department currently has a juvenile in custody in association with her death, the community continues to come together to show their support for Lily and her grieving family.
Driving through downtown Chippewa Falls, one sees large memorials outside of Leinenkugel’s Brewery and Parkview Elementary, and dozens of purple ribbons have been hung up on street lamps and businesses to show support for the young Chippewa Falls resident.
In addition to these visual displays, area businesses have stepped up for Lily, offering free merchandise for Chippewa Valley citizens. Jacobson’s Ace Hardware is offering free purple light bulbs, the Chippewa Store is giving out stickers and pins, and other businesses around the city are giving out shirts and other apparel to publicly show their support for Lily Peters and her family.
A topic of concern after Lily Peters’ death is why authorities didn’t issue an Amber Alert in the wake of her disappearance Sunday night. Some say it was because it was unclear whether Lily was in any immediate physical danger, but one local father is taking steps to ensure this sort of occurrence doesn’t happen in the future.
Eric Henry started a Change.org petition to create a “Lily Alert” for local cases that don’t qualify for a traditional Amber Alert. Currently, Amber Alerts may only be issued for children believed to be in danger of serious bodily harm or death. They also require a description of the child, plus a suspect or vehicle to look out for.
“Any parent would agree that when a child is missing, even for a short amount of time, and they need help then help should be sent,” Henry said in the petition. “The community is devastated and rallied to start a search group for the missing child. We can do better as a community and must be proactive. We need an alert with less regulations around it so we can respond quicker to missing children.”
The petition had collected over 50,000 signatures as of Wednesday afternoon.
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