TACOMA, Wash. -- More than a thousand people mourned the deaths of
Charlie and Braden Powell at a public funeral Saturday, nearly a week
after the young boys' father killed them and himself in a gas-fueled
blaze.
"We want to celebrate their innocence today," said the Rev. Dean
Curry, lead pastor of Life Center Church in Tacoma. "We want to be
grateful for the moments we had with these children."
The boys' grandfather Chuck Cox thanked police, social
workers, teachers and everyone who cared for Charlie, 7, and Braden, 5,
as well as people who had prayed for the boys after they died.
It "helps us to know that there are good people in the world – good people who fight against evil," Cox said.
At the front of the church's sanctuary, the boys were in a single
casket topped with a large flower arrangement that included daisies,
roses and sunflowers.
"We know that they're with their mother," Cox said, remembering his
daughter, Susan Powell, who has been missing for two years and is
presumed dead.
The boys' father, Josh Powell, was in the middle of a custody battle
with Cox when he torched his rental home in Graham last Sunday.
Josh Powell was a person of interest in his wife's disappearance in
Utah two years ago, and prosecutors consider the fire an admission that
he killed her.
Cox gained custody of the children more than five months ago after
police arrested Josh Powell's father, Steve, on voyeurism and child
pornography charges.
The
kids were arriving for a supervised visit when Josh Powell blocked a
social worker from entering the home. He then attacked the boys with a
hatchet and torched the house, authorities said.
Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said Saturday that Josh Powell's body will be released to a cousin Monday.
About 1,200 people attended the boys' funeral at Life Center Church
in Tacoma. Many of them wore purple and blue ribbons in memory of Susan,
Charlie and Braden.
Two teachers shared their memories and read letters from other instructors who had interacted with the boys.
Charlie was remembered as a boy fascinated with science and insects,
often trying to sneak worms or caterpillars into the classroom. He was
about to get glasses and loved to write, dreaming up plans to market his
books.
"At an early age, Charlie displayed a keen intellect and
compassionate heart," said Tammy Ougheon, Charlie's kindergarten teacher
in Utah. "He was an amazing young man."
His younger brother, Braden, preferred cars and trains, teachers
remembered, and last Halloween got to dress up as a Transformer. Braden,
teachers said, loved to be tickled.
"Braden walked through the doors every day with a big smile on his
face," said Kristie King, an instructor at a YMCA where Braden was
enrolled in a pre-kindergarten program.
King said Braden "had a heart of gold, always wanting to show affection."
"Braden liked to hold his teacher's hand and not let go," she said.
Three projection screens inside the church showed photos of the boys:
pictures of them smiling with their mother, laughing with their
grandparents and playing outside.
"We are grateful for the opportunity that we've each had to have felt
the joy that these two small children have brought into our lives in
their short lives," family member Kirk Graves said in the funeral's
closing prayer.
People started lining up outside the church more than an hour before the service was set to begin.
Tony Deponte, 39, said he was in "total shock" when he heard of the boys' deaths.
"The first thing I did was stop and pray for these children," said
Deponte, of Tacoma. "The whole community
is feeling their loss."
Amanda Morse, of Seattle, was standing outside the church, holding
her 5-month-old son, Ronan. She said she wanted the family to know that
they weren't alone.
"It was a tragedy that shouldn't have happened," she said.
A private interment will take place Monday at Woodbine Cemetery in Puyallup.
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