Community offers prayers for Lonzie to come home

21-month-old boy has been missing for 8 days; case now a murder investigation

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Dozens gathered at a Northside church Friday evening to pray for the safe return of missing toddler Lonzie Barton.

Those who attended the vigil, organized by the Justice Coalition at Oceanway Assembly of God, wore blue to represent the 21-month-old boy's piercing blue eyes.

They held hands, prayed, lit candles and listened as a young girl sang, "You Are My Sunshine."

"This story touched my heart. I have never felt so passionate about a little boy that has gone missing," said Brenda Butterworth, who helped organize the vigil. "With all the stories here in Jacksonville, as far as Somer Thompson, Haleigh Cummings, Cherish Perrywinkle, it just breaks my heart. That's why I decided to become a member of the Justice Coalition."

The mother of 8-year-old Somer Thompson, who was sexually assaulted and murdered in 2009, was at Friday's vigil to support Lonzie's family. Diena Thompson understands the pain of searching for a missing child. Days after Somer went missing, her body was found in a Georgia landfill.

"We decided this would be a good opportunity to let them know that Somer is our sunshine and any child that goes missing is our sunshine, and we're here for Lonzie," Diena Thompson said.

It was Somer's sister, Abigail, who sang at the vigil.

One of Lonzie's cousins was at the event and thanked Justice Coalition board member Ken Jefferson for hosting it.

Chris Barton holds his son, Lonzie Barton

"She said they're hoping against hope," Jefferson said. "As time separates itself, it becomes a little bit more gloomy for them. Their mindset is, 'We want to find Lonzie alive and well.' But still in the back of their minds, they're thinking this is more of a recovery now than anything else."

Lonzie disappeared late Thursday night or early Friday morning while in the care of his mother's boyfriend, William Ruben Ebron Jr., who is now considered a suspect in the case.

Ebron originally claimed someone stole his car from an apartment parking lot with Lonzie inside. The car was quickly found less than a mile from where it was reported stolen with no sign of Lonzie. Within 24 hours, police said Ebron was inside his apartment doing cocaine at the time and called his story of Lonzie's abduction a lie.

In an interview with The Florida Star, Ebron said there was another adult at the apartment and suggested police look into Lonzie's father, Chris Barton.

Lonzie's cousin who attended Friday's vigil said the family was shocked to learn about the roommate and that Ebron was pointing fingers at Chris Barton (pictured above holding Lonzie).

The cousin, who asked not to be identified, said the family has been lighting a blue candle every night and praying for Lonzie's return. The family has also created a video montage of Lonzie's photos, set to "You Are My Sunshine," and posted it on Facebook.

Seeing Lonzie's photo on the news shocked Middleburg resident Cassandra Brickle. She said her 1-year-old son, TJ (pictured below), looks just like Lonzie.

"The resemblance in these two is crazy, and when I saw the picture, my heart stopped, and I was like, 'Oh my gosh,'" Brickle said.

She said even though she has no connection to Lonzie's family, she drove an hour and a half to attend Friday's vigil and show her support.

"The whole world revolves around these kids, and we treasure them, and I can't imagine what his mom is going through," Brickle said. "I just wanted to support the mom and bring flowers and just show that we care, and I wish there was something we could do. Every time I pass by where they're searching for the baby, I just want to come over and help."

Police have said the case is now considered a murder investigation, but they will continue to search for Lonzie's body until he is found.

"I must take my hat off to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and the diligent efforts that they've been doing," Jefferson, a former JSO spokesman, said. "They've gotten a whole lot better with keeping the public informed with constant updates and information as they can release it. I think that they're doing an outstanding job and we need to pray for those officers who are up early in the morning and out late at night and they're in wooded areas. They're leaving their families and going to try to find this child, and that's what they should do."