Md. town honors family of 8 killed by carbon monoxide
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. — In life, Rodney Todd was a pillar of strength for his seven children.
In death, he is a beacon of hope for single dads, and, for a town in mourning, a force of unity and faith.
Todd and his seven children died at their home last week from accidental carbon monoxide poisoning, their deaths leaving a legacy of camaraderie between neighbors, churches, schools, businesses, law enforcement and even strangers.
On April 6, police found the family dead in their Princess Anne home and a generator that had run out of fuel in the kitchen. The house did not have electricity. The family had not been seen since March 28.
"We don't always understand God's plan," Shaun Sutton told a group of mourners last week. "We've got to have faith and believe God is able."
Sutton spoke Thursday to a packed audience at Washington Academy & High School that held a prayer vigil for the family. The event was one of several vigils, hours of prayer and fundraisers for the family.
Tyjuziana Todd, 15, was a Washington student, who, according to principal Sidney Hankerson, loved the color purple.
SILVER LINING
"She had a beautiful smile," said Hankerson, wearing a purple shirt at the high school vigil. "She and six other siblings were taken away too soon. They were seven little angels and a loving father. We have come together as a community to take care of its sons and daughters."
The 36-year-old Todd died with two sons, Cameron, 13; and Zhi'Heem, 7; and five daughters, Ty'Keria, 12; Ty'Nijuzia, 11; Ty'Niah, 9; Tybreyia, 6; and Tyjuziana.
If there is a silver lining to their deaths, it is the spirit of community and its faith in a higher power, said John Gaddis, Somerset County superintendent of schools.
"Two things stood out: the support shown throughout the community," said Gaddis. "The second thing that stood out is the power of prayer."
A vigil Friday night drew more than 100 people who stood in drizzling rain at the Todd family home.
They sang, prayed and released blue-colored balloons in the family's memory.
'GOOD FATHERS'
"We have been able to lift up our faith," the Rev. Ronald Bell told the crowd. "What holds us together at a time like this is our belief and trust in God.
"We have to take one step at a time, one day at a time," said Bell, pastor at Metropolitan United Methodist Church in Princess Anne.
Kirkland Hall, an advocate for children and civic leader, called on fathers to speak, saying that "very seldom do men come forward or have the chance to say how they feel.
"We have some good fathers still left," said Hall, noting a growing number of households nationwide with minor children headed by a single father. "It saddens me that the community, including myself, failed them. It's tough to raise one or two children, so with seven, it was a really tough task."
Chico Mollock of Delmar, Md., a father of five children, said Todd defied the stereotypical African-American father depicted as detached from the family dynamic.
"Bless the men, and the women out here who are trying to do it by themselves," said Mollock.
NEIGHBORLY CAMARADERIE
Antioch United Methodist Church pastor, the Rev. Mark Thomas, recalls the camaraderie between neighbors from different walks of life and clergy of several faiths who gathered with law enforcement officers outside the Todd home the evening of April 6, after learning about the deaths.
"It warmed my heart to see that," Thomas said. "It was a mini vigil that night from law enforcement to family to clergy."
Unity is what impressed Capt. Tim Bozman at the Princess Anne Police Department.
"The whole community is affected by this," he told the audience at the Thursday night vigil. "The good thing I saw is how the community came together."
A fish fry was held Saturday in Antioch's parking lot to raise money for the Todd family funeral, which is April 18 at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.
"I didn't know them personally, but just the fact that there are children," said Clara Owens, whose KO BBQ food vending company accepted donations for fish dinners.
"I said, 'Clara, we've got to do something and donate everything to that family,' " said her husband and partner, Keith. "The food we're serving came from everybody in the community, the businesses in town from Ace Hardware to the Washington High School Boosters."
Contributing: Brian Shane and Ben Penserga, The (Salisbury, Md.) Daily Times.