A memorial is being organized to remember Grayson O’Connor, the 5-year-old boy who was found dead Monday in a downtown Kansas City alley after police say his body fell from an open window of a high-rise apartment.
Police are investigating the case as a suspicious death, saying Grayson may have died as a result of homicide or child neglect. His mother was taken to a hospital for an unspecified reason on Monday and has not been seen by neighbors in the building since.
Neighbors have told The Star they long feared Grayson, who lived on the 17th floor of the building, may have been neglected or abused and reports had been made previously to authorities.
No criminal charges had been filed in the case as of Friday.
Organizing the memorial is Victoria Shaw, 27, a mother of two daughters, ages 4 and 6. It is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Grand Boulevard Lofts, 1006 Grand Boulevard in Kansas City.
Shaw lives in the downtown Kansas City area and says she would frequently see Grayson waiting with his mother at the bus stop near their building.
On Monday, Shaw walked past the alley near 10th Street and Grand Boulevard where Grayson’s body was found as police were on scene. She later learned a child had died.
“It touched my heart because I have children,” Shaw told The Star by phone on Friday, adding: “Since he’s resting now, I want him to have the love that he should have had when he was here.”
Through the memorial, Shaw said toys are being collected that will be donated to area social service organizations. She is asking people to bring toy fire trucks, stuffed bears and dinosaurs.