Madeleine parents mark 15th anniversary
THE parents of Madeleine McCann joined friends and supporters to remember their daughter on the 15th anniversary of her disappearance last night.
Kate and Gerry, pictured in public for the first time in four years, appeared at a poignant prayer service in their home village of Rothley, Leicestershire.
The annual outdoor event had been cancelled for the past two years because of Covid restrictions.
Kate, 54, fought back tears as children lit candles for Madeleine.
She also gave a reading to the 100-strong crowd, saying: “Survival can be summed up three words. Never give up. That’s the heart of it really, just keep trying.
“Sometimes you have to get knocked down. Lower than you have ever been. To stand up taller than you ever were. Perseverance is stubbornness.”
A family source said:
“Kate and Gerry enjoy going to the service for a time of prayer and quiet reflection. They always appreciate the support of the public.”
In a public posting. Kate and Gerry wrote: “Many people talk about the need for ‘closure’. It’s always felt a strange term. Regardless of outcome, Madeleine will always be our daughter and a truly horrific crime has been committed. “These things will remain. It is true though that uncertainty creates weakness. Knowledge and certainty give strength.
“And, for this reason, our need for answers, for the truth, is essential.” German rapist Christian Brueckner, 44, was recently made an official suspect in the case. Three-year-old Madeleine, left, vanished from a holiday flat in Portugal’s Praia da Luz in May 2007.