WORTON — There was healing through pain, and hope shining through exceedingly dark times during the Maryland Statewide Memorial Service for crime victims and their families on Sunday.
Held at the Kent County Community Center, the service was hosted by the Baltimore, Carroll, Kent and St. Mary’s County State’s Attorney offices and the Maryland State Board of Victim Services.
Victim/Witness Coordinator for the Kent County State’s Attorney’s Office Shelly McMath said, the service alternates each year between counties. This year, it was in Kent County and had a turnout of about 30 people.
During the service, McMath was honored for her time and dedication.
“She’s an angel,” one of her clients said.
Another client and survivor of domestic assault, Abby Joiner said McMath was instrumental in her healing process.
“I am thankful to the village of people who helped me heal,” said Joyner.
During this somber ceremony to remember victims of crime and their families, Kent County professionals who work in the crime field all had a role to play.
Following some emotional lyrics and skilled keyboard play by musician, Marion Saunders, Rock Hall Police Chief William Dempsey read, “Say Their Names,” adapted from a book by Don Hackett, “Say Olin to Say Goodbye.”
Guests called out the names of the victims they wished to memorialize.
Along that same spirit, Kent County Clerk of Courts, Sherise Kennard read the poem, “Don’t Quit,”by Edgar Albert Guest.
It’s a reminder that in the most trying of times, sunnier skies are ahead.
Commissioner Albert Nickerson was the guest speaker for the day. He, naturally, grew emotional when talking about his brother, Michael Scott Nickerson, who was killed in the line of duty in the 300 block of Hammond Street, Centreville, Feb. 13, 2001.
His message was that through adversity, it’s vital to seek out a support system, family and friends, and to turn personal pain into productivity; a way to help others.
Nickerson’s message was well-received.
Those survivors who stepped up to talk next exemplified that determination. They spoke of their traumatizing ordeals but also about the strength to live on, thrive and prosper.
Celestine Heath’s 15-year-old niece, I’kea Nicole Jackson, was murdered December 5, 2016, in Glenn Burnie, she told attendees. As horrific as that was, she said God got the family through. Now she sees reflections of Jackson’s personality in her 7-year-old granddaughter.
Fighting back tears, Heath said the two are so much alike that “her and I’kea would have had a ball together.”
Lorena Batson dealt with her ex-husband’s domestic violence for eight long years, before having the courage to break free. Now, she’s remarried, healed, and has a great relationship with her husband and children.
One of McMath’s first victim-survivors, Amy Mitchell was attacked in Rock Hall in 2007, where a person she knew for several years became “increasingly diabolical.” McMath’s guidance connected Mitchell to the Whitsitt Center where she got sober, and because her abuser violated his protective order, the system put him away.
She’s thankful for the services, and thankful for Kent County as a supportive place to live.
Reflecting back, Mitchell said she’s amazed at the life she has now.
Many more victim-survivors stepped up to tell their story.
All were different, but the drive to overcome despite the circumstances was a common theme.
Sue Nickerson, the commissioner’s mother, added to her son’s story, reliving those moments of riding to the hospital after hearing that her son was shot.
Looking back, she said she’s grateful for the huge amount of support she received from family and friends, especially during the two-year period between the trial of her son’s killer.
Now she helps others through their pain as the President/Executive Director of the Maryland Concerns of Police Survivors.
She found a way to still see her son in the profession he loved.
“I was told a long time ago that if I were to look into the center of every officer’s badge, I would see Michael,” she said.
McMath said talking about these experiences encourages others to step up.
Even Kennard, who walked up to the podium to speak, not as Clerk of Courts, but as a victim survivor.
For the first time publicly she told the tragic story of her mother, Joyce Henson, who was set on fire by her husband while Kennard was in school at 16 years of age.
Kennard drew strength from that, seeing the way her mother was able to embrace life after being burned on 80% of her body.
“She is a survivor, thank God. She is so strong. She’s physically burned but when I look at her I see beauty and faith.”
Beth Anne Dorman, president For All Seasons, spoke close to last, and was also closely acquainted with domestic violence. Not only did she work with victims everyday, as a clinician, she witnessed it through her husband, whose sister was killed at the hands of an ex-boyfriend.
Dorman said she sees how it affected him and his journey to come to terms with it is wondrous to see.
She encouraged survivors to do everything they can to care for their well-being, taking the time and space they need to heal.
After a responsive reading “We Remember Them” written by Marilyn Gilbert and read by Chief Ron Dixon of the Chestertown Police Department, McMath was honored.
Based on the testimonies of the victims, seeing how many lives she positively affected, it was well-deserved.
She accepted the two proclamations from the Governor’s Office and the State’s Attorney’s Office of Kent County with gratitude, recalling later how she started working with the police as a dispatcher right out of high school.
She said she loves what she does, helping people through tough times and getting them the services they need.
Master of Ceremonies Kent State’s Attorney Bryan DiGregory said, “I have been fortunate enough to work with Shelly. Her intelligence is only surpassed by her compassion. And I think many of you in this room know her compassion. It’s extraordinary.”
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