He also said he appreciated all the support the family received from the community after Lane’s death.
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The story of the boy killed by an alligator while vacationing at Disney World shocked the country – and made a deep impact on his rural hometown with a population under 10,000. “Anyone who knows me knows I don’t like to speak but, my baby, I owe it to him to honor him”.
The Omaha World-Herald reports that Melissa Graves said the family wanted to celebrate Lane’s “first birthday in heaven”.
On June 12, Lane was playing on the beach at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa when he was grabbed by an alligator, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. A Facebook page was set up for the event asking that the community, “come together and surround the Graves family with our love and support for them and their sweet angel, Lane”.
“We fight every day to find peace”, Graves said at a community celebration for her son’s birthday. “You’re in our hearts today and every second of every other day, ‘” the Time magazine quoted Melissa as saying. “When we were apart you would tell us, “I missed you” as we walked through the door. And we miss those hugs and kisses”. While those photos haven’t surfaced yet, we can confirm that blue was in no short supply, and that this much-loved little boy is also much-missed by his friends and family.
Matt remembered the joy Lane brought to the family. It also said the alligator may have lost its fear of humans because it lived in close proximity to large numbers of people.
Family and friends released 5,000 balloons in his honor Saturday, which would would have been his third birthday. “So his mommy needed to say, happy birthday, Lanie”.
Since the attack, Walt Disney World has built a stone wall around the lake where the toddler was attacked.
The Graves’ neighbors, Brandi and Mike Miller, put together the event, which they called the “Love for Lane Celebration”.
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Two years, nine months and 11 days is all the time Matt and Melissa Graves had with their boy.
