Prayer vigil held in Helena for 55-pound teen victim of abuse

By Jonece Starr Dunigan | jdunigan@reckonmedia.com

Saxton Nagy said a special prayer Thursday night for the 55-pound teen who was locked in a basement by his adopted parents a Helena home for two years.

Nagy, 13, was one of the 80 people who gathered for a vigil for the 14-year-old victim on a baseball field at the Helena Sports Complex. Like the rest of the participants, Nagy was shocked to hear the details of what happened to the victim. According to Helena Police, the boy is gravely ill at an undisclosed hospital because his adoptive parents, Richard and Cynthia Kelly, denied him nourishment and medical care.

Nagy hopes faith will make the victim healthy again both spiritually and mentally.

"God, help this boy," he prayed. "Nurture him back to health and help him to forgive."

Amanda Shannell and her friend organized the event to bring awareness. Although the alleged abuse went on for years, the investigation began Sunday after Helena Police were notified by the Department of Human Resources that a child had arrived at the hospital. Police said the teen's parents took him there when his health became worse. The couple was arrested and charged with aggravated child abuse, a class B felony, on Monday. They were placed in Shelby County Jail on $1 million bond each.

Many people of the small, close-knit town were not aware of the situation.

"We wanted to raise awareness to the unknown things that are going on in our community," Shannell said. "When we come together and pray together, miracles can happen."

Nagy's father, Kelly, and mother, Lyne, also attended the vigil with heavy hearts for a victim that was only one year older than their son. According to police, the teen was forced to experience long periods of time in isolation as a form of punishment. Kelly Nagy worries about the teen's mindset.

"You can't get a day back. They took two years from this little boy. They robbed him," Kelly Nagy said. "I hope he doesn't have hate in his heart."

As a mother, Lyne Nagy thought about the victim's well-being. The police accused the adopted parents of denying the teen food and water. Lyne Nagy believes the teen was also denied love and care at an age when most children his age are going through hormonal changes.

She also thought about the people who wait years to become foster parents and how the victim didn't end up in a loving home.

"(Children) are a gift from God," Lyne Nagy said. "They threw away the opportunity to take care of that child."

The case remains under investigation.