Boston

Vigil for 4-Year-Old Mohamed Fofana Held at Castle Island: ‘I Love You So Much'

The body of Mohamed Abou Fofana was found on the shore of one of the Boston Harbor islands last Monday after he went missing a day earlier

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Dozens of friends and relatives were among those who gathered at Castle Island on Sunday for a vigil in honor of Mohamed Fofana, the 4-year-old South Boston boy who died after he disappeared from a playground there on Mother's Day.

Following an intense search by air, on the ground and in the water, Mohamed's body was found the next day on the shore of Spectacle Island, which is over a mile across the water from Castle Island.

The little boy's mother told us her son was on the autism spectrum, was non-verbal and had a tendency to wander off. She said Mohamed was playing with his grandfather and 7-year-old sister when the grandpa suddenly lost sight of him Sunday night and then called 911.

Despite the unthinkable grief she's facing, Mohamed's mother found the strength to speak about her son at Sunday's vigil, saying, "I love you Mohamed so much."

She also broke down in tears as she hugged her son's teacher at the vigil and thanked everyone for their support during this unimaginably difficult time.

"It has been very hard but with all the support that has been given to us it has made it easier for us," a relative said. "He was always happy, you never saw him sad. He liked ABC's, Baby Shark, Coco Melon, all of that."

Others who were at the vigil on Sunday included Yahaira Lopez. She's the mother of an autistic child and the founder of Autism Sprinter, one of the groups that organized the candlelit vigil and is now calling for more resources for families with autistic children, hoping to raise awareness for children with disabilities.

"I started crying, I think we all started crying. We all picked up the phone and said this is not easy and we just decided to say we have to do something, we have to show the family that there are other autism families that understand this plight," Lopez said. "We organized this because we know what it feels like to be an autism mom and not being able to use public spaces because our children are elopers, they wander off. It feels like no one understands and it feels like legislation is not moving fast enough to help families with resources."

Mohamed's death has left the entire community shaken, including Boston Public Schools where he was a pre-K student at the Lee K-8 School in Dorchester.

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