Hundreds Remember Boy 1 Year After Drowning

After a year of grieving the death of Joel Burchfield, it is time to move on, Father Mike Walsh told the boy’s friends Friday.

As more than 500 of Joel’s friends and relatives gathered to mark the first anniversary of his drowning, Walsh told the people filling Moorpark’s Holy Cross Church that they should cherish the boy’s memory but put the past year’s hurt behind them.

Walsh noted how extraordinary that year was. Joel’s Little League team made it to the World Series. His parents and friends, working with city officials, finally launched construction of a bridge over the arroyo where he drowned.

“Maybe we need to turn a corner,” Walsh said softly. “We may not play every game for Joel, we may not have his picture there in front of us, we may not remember him at every baseball or basketball game. And that’s OK.”

The altar carried reminders of Joel: a baseball mitt, pictures--one framed in flowers--of the 11-year-old boy, a Lego model of a bridge over a stream.

But Walsh also focused on those in the community who rallied to the side of Joel’s family during the year, and said that if Joel were now an angel, so too were many of the people he left behind.

Joel’s father, Dan Burchfield, also thanked neighbors for helping his family through the year.

“The outpouring of love has lifted our spirits and enriched our hearts,” he told the quiet crowd.

Focusing on the children who knew Joel, Walsh invited them to light small candles from the large Christ candle that stood next to a photo of their friend. The priest then told them how one bright flame can touch many.

“A little bit of light can really go a long way if we share it,” he said.

Dan Burchfield then led the more than 100 children out of the church.

In the parking lot outside, the service’s serious mood broke. Guests hugged and started laughing again.

Blake Sharpe, 13, said the service had fulfilled its purpose.

“It makes us sad, but it also makes it better, just to get it all out.”