Living through family tragedy
Thursday marked the one-year anniversary of the tragic death of local native Margery Magill. Her parents Jeff and Bonnie didn’t hold a big event to mark the day but have spent the year trying to perpetuate their daughter’s memory.
“It’s been a tough year,” Jeff said.
Jeff has been working on building a park bench at the Wheatland
High School woodshop that, when complete, will be placed in Wangari Park in Washington, D.C,. with Margery’s name on it. In addition, a scholarship program was set up in Margery’s honor, a Marysville High School building was named after her, UC Davis planted an Oak tree in her honor, and other monuments in D.C. and the National FFA center in Indianapolis have been completed.
“It is a mix of emotions,” Jeff said. “We want to perpetuate her memory and her love for life.”
Magill was 27 and had been living in D.C. since December 2018. On a Tuesday evening last August, Magill was stabbed multiple times while out walking a dog. Eliyas Aregahedne, 24, was arrested for murder.
Jeff Magill said he and his wife have followed their daughter’s example in dealing with the unimaginable loss.
“There’s happy and sad times but she was very much a realist and a minimalist and wouldn’t have wanted to be sad for a long time,” Jeff said.
Bonnie said the family has felt supported this week and throughout the year and has received numerous emails, texts, phone calls, and letters.
“The thing I like which I wasn’t really expecting is we got quite a few who were her friends,” Bonnie said.
She said some were colleagues or classmates of Margery’s that she and Jeff did not know very well. Because Margery wasn’t buried at a cemetery, Bonnie said the sites across the country where memorials have been placed or will be soon will give people places to go to honor Margery.
“It’s kind of neat,” Bonnie said.
Jeff has taken up the cause of bringing awareness to the issue of mental illness based on questions about why Magill’s killer did what he did. Jeff said he’s met with local legislators James Gallagher and Jim Nielsen but has been frustrated by not being sure what can be done. He said a place to start may be linking the homelessness issue to the mental health issue.
“That’s been the most frustrating thing,” Jeff said. “Not really knowing where to go.”
Despite his frustration, Jeff said there are people who want to fight the problem. Another frustration is the fact that the alleged murderer still hasn’t gone to trial. The pandemic has played into delaying proceedings. The family was told it could take about a year for Aregahedne to be sentenced but now it is expected to take a whole other year.
“It’s a little frustrating,” Jeff said. “That would definitely be some closure.”