National Day of Remembrance for murdered children

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- For National Day of Remembrance, many mothers across the country recall the loss of their children.

They are faces in a frame, frozen in time. For their families time passes, but the grief never does. Names and faces who became victims of crime.

Marshan Parker was just 23. "We're losing a whole generation of children," Michelle Parker, his mother, said. Marshan was killed in a drive-by shooting in Stafford. "I moved from Chicago to give him a chance from the violence in Chicago and it happened here. It's everywhere. We have to do something," she said.

There are so many cases, some have been solved, some have gone cold.

Like the murder of Steven Castro, a 23-year-old aspiring songwriter and father of twins. "They still remember him," his mother Maria Romo said. One of the twins had a total meltdown yesterday, she said. "She was missing her daddy." Castro was stabbed outside a nightclub. "He was not only my son but my best friend."

National Day of Remembrance comes once a year, but for the parents of murdered children there will never be a day they forget. "If I can do something to help one mother not feel what I'm feeling, it's worth it," Parker said.

National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims is a day of public awareness about the impact of violent crime on families. It was established in 2007, through resolutions passed by the U.S. Congress. The organization's purpose is to "provide support and assistance to all survivors of homicide victims while working to create a world free of murder," according to the group's website.

"Tragically, each year an estimated 14,249 persons are murdered nationwide, a murder every 36.9 minutes. The mission of the National Organization of Parents Of Murdered Children, Inc. (POMC) is to make a difference through on-going emotional support, education, prevention, advocacy, and awareness," a statement on the website explains. The group has more than 60 chapters across the country.