He brought so much joy to those around him, and his loss has been devastating to the family.
The mother of 3-year-old Fabian Garett-Garcia is speaking out, pleading to get some answers on her son’s death.
Garett-Garcia died nearly a month ago on Hawaii island while he was in foster care. The medical examiner has not released an autopsy report.
KHON2 was the first to tell you about the state’s investigation.
The emotion is still raw for Sherri-Ann Garett, who is not only looking for answers. She also wants justice for the death of her son.
Funeral services for the toddler were held last week in California. While there’s some relief for the family in laying him to rest, the loss is still overwhelming.
“I have laid him to rest and I have made my peace that he is gone. I don’t know if I’ve completely convinced myself that I’m at peace, because it still hurts too much,” Garett said.
The pain is punctuated with not knowing how and why Garett-Garcia died. There are still parts of a gag order imposed by the state that remain in place, and with his cause of death still undetermined, all the family can do is wait.
“I do want answers, which we’re not getting yet, nothing we can make sense of anyway. It’s just hard, so I’m reaching out to God more,” said Garett.
To help deal with the loss, she’s trying to focus more on the pleasant memories of a child who always brought a smile to people’s faces, because he himself was always so happy.
“He was such a joy. Everything he did was so enjoyable. I love my son and I miss him so much. I can’t believe this has happened. It’s still very shocking,” said Garett.
She adds that she will probably never get all the answers she wants, but it’s her hope that if the death somehow could have been prevented, then the necessary steps are taken to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
“I want to know what is going to be done about this. I don’t know, my son, his death, it needs to change something somewhere. I want justice for my son. I want his life to not have been in vain,” she said.
