Cary in Carpinteria.

Cary at home.

Cary's' graduation from High School

Cary with his Mom, Wendy Lynch

​​​​​​​How do we show that we care about people? How does the love we have for others manifest itself

In the world? How does that love play out in our very own households, in our churches, in our own

communities?

I have a grandson who is missing. I hurt. I hurt really bad. And my daughter, my grandson’s own

very real Mommy hurts even more than I do. We need to find a way to alleviate that hurt. We need to

find my grandson. We are no good without this precious young man that belongs to our family, belongs

to all of our families. Yes, the children of the world belong to all of us. It is our responsibility to make

sure that we are doing all that we can do to give them a chance to grow up in a secure and safe world

so that they have an opportunity to nurture and pursue their dreams.

Let me tell you my story because it is my grandson’s story too. He is a Black child that grew up in racial

torn America without a father. I lost my father when I was eleven to divorce but unlike my father who

loved his children and saw them regularly - my grandson did not have a loving father. My grandson’s

journey through boyhood was much more challenging than any child’s journey should have to be. Too

many youth in America end up in diminishing circumstances because they do not receive the counseling

and support they need to make it through the obstacles that are thrown in their paths.

President Obama lost his father when he was a young boy to divorce and though he had a loving mother

and giving grandparents, he still struggled with his identity and his purpose in life. Not everyone has

the tenacity that Barack Obama had to find his way but, certainly, every young person deserves a

decent chance to navigate from childhood to adulthood. What happened to my grandson, the fact that

he ran away and is classified as missing, is a story that is happening each and every day in this country

to someone’s child.

Children run away and go missing because sometimes they just cannot handle the things the world

brings to them. It is a fast paced world and often the events that are happening right in one’s own

environment are not known by a parent who had all intention of being the good caregiver, the “real

watchdog.”

When a child ends up out there “missing” - in this hostile world in which we all find ourselves – we

must try to make some sense of it. We must make an earnest effort to turn things around - to bring this

child back home and give this child the opportunities that they always deserved.

My grandson, Cary, nicknamed Cal-Boy, is a truly gentle spirit. He celebrates his life always by

welcoming strangers as friends, letting them know that he notices their presence and appreciates them.

He genuinely is pleased to greet them with a smile and handshake. Cal-Boy is a diplomat in every

sense of the word – gracious and humble and really wanting to make a difference in the world with his

affection for his fellow brothers and sisters. Cary loves people of every race and persuasion.

He deserves a chance to show the world community that he can be a contributing member of society.

We can find Cary. It will take effort. It will take reaching out, and hard work, and a commitment to

work together as neighbor, artist, musician, friend, business, institution, organizer, blogger, rapper or

tweeter – WE CAN FIND our CAL-BOY.