Memorial Services Held for 3 Discarded Babies : Children: People gather at two Orange County beach to show their concern. The newborns were found in a four-day span last month.

Cathy Sullivan had brought her two daughters here Sunday, to stand on the beach as the sun set on an unusual memorial service for three dead newborns found discarded in Orange County during a four-day span last month.

Sullivan took the time to attend the service--one of two held simultaneously in Huntington Beach and Newport Beach--to show her concern for the children, she said, and for the still unknown mothers who abandoned them.

“We try so hard in Orange County for (the parents) to know that there’s help out there,” Sullivan said. “We did this to heal Orange County a little bit.”

About 75 people attended each ceremony, organized on short notice by community members shocked by the grisly discoveries March 11, 12 and 14.

“I feel very tied to all babies right now,” said Julie Fletcher, a Huntington Beach resident who cradled her 8-month-old daughter, Chelsea, in her arms during the ceremony here.

“It’s . . . in memory of three babies that never had a chance,” said Bill Fletcher, her husband. “We’re here to look toward the future and realize how important kids are.”

On March 11, the body of a newborn girl washed up on Newport Beach, where it was discovered in the surf line by a woman out for her morning walk. The next day, the body of a second newborn girl was found on Sunset Beach.

Two days later, a dead infant boy was found outside the Meadowlark West apartments in San Clemente. All three infants had their umbilical cords attached. Investigators have not determined the cause of death for any of them.

Participants at both services sang and prayed before throwing flowers into the ocean in memory of the infants.

Organizers found the turnout surprising, but said the crowds reflected the deep concern that county residents feel about the dead infants.

“They were throwaways, like an empty packet of cigarettes,” said Dorothy Berriman, who helped to organize the Newport Beach service. “Life is precious. . . . Life is sacred.”

Some speakers at the Huntington Beach service used the ceremony to denounce abortion, but most who were there said the memorials were unrelated to the abortion debate.

Sam Lewis, associate pastor at Beach Cities Community Church in Huntington Beach, said he and his wife have lost four children at birth, and the infants’ deaths play into people’s fears of their own mortality.

“One of the greatest things in life is knowing that your life has meaning and significance,” said Lewis, who has two sons living.

Carol Paradiso, also a Huntington Beach resident, said she felt “very compelled” to attend the service, in part because she is expecting her first grandchild in June.

Paradiso said concern for the babies should transcend political, social and religious boundaries. “I think it’s very important for people, no matter what they believe, to be here,” she said.