Grenfell -
Rodney Stafford is trying to keep his daughter's memory alive, while hopefully preventing others from going through what he and his family have had to endure.
Stafford has embarked on a quest called Kilometres for Kids, in which he is cycling from Ontario to Alberta to educate parents on how to keep their children safe from predators, and to raise funds for Child Find. He passed through southern Saskatchewan along the way, with a stop in Regina.
Stafford's daughter Victoria (Tori) was abducted in April of this year, and her body found in July. Two people, a man and a woman, have been charged with her murder. Tori was only eight years old.
The case drew international attention, including the assistance of America's Most
Wanted. The host of the show also had a child who was abducted and killed.
Stafford began his journey just a couple of weeks after his daughter's body was found. He wants to make others aware that any community, no matter how safe, could potentially fall victim to child abduction.
"I want people to know that no matter where you live, whether it be a big city, a small town, a little community, it can happen anywhere, at any time," Stafford said to the Leader Post. "These people find out ways to make it happen and children are disappearing everywhere. We have to try to put some kind of stop to it."
On September 8, he entered Saskatchewan, where he enlisted the help of a man from Whitewood who also knows first-hand the dangers of child abductors. Three years ago his 10-year-old son was taken by convicted pedophile Peter Whitmore, but luckily did not meet the same fate as young Tori.
The boy managed to escape from the abandoned farmhouse where he was being held, just southeast of Whitewood, and was reunited with his family. The father of the Whitewood boy cannot be identified due to a court-ordered publication ban.
Stafford admits that he has had some difficult moments along the way, including one stop in Kenora.
"Right on the rock wall, someone spray painted their nickname "Chubbs." That was what we called my daughter," he told the Leader Post. "I was biking along and I just happened to look up and I seen it and it was - instant.
"I had to pull over and take a break. I sat down and cried for like 10 minutes," he said. "It just hit me so hard, just seeing that name."
Stafford is biking from his hometown of Woodstock, Ontario, to Edmonton, Alberta. He has now been on the road for over a month, and has managed to raise over $20,000 for Child Find.
When he reaches Alberta, Stafford plans to release a single purple balloon from a mountain in Jasper, where Tori visited a favorite aunt last year. Purple was his daughter's favorite colour.
Those who wish to track Stafford's can do so by going to the EyesZon web site (www.eye-zon.com). Donations for the Kilometres for Kids fundraiser can be made at Conexus Credit Union branches.
