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3 years after her death…A breath of love about Morgan

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MorganscandleBurning candles all around our house today for Morgan

This post was written by Morgan’s daddy, Steve.

This morning there are so many things of Morgan’s surrounding us, her paintings, photographs, a little silver charm with her first name engraved on it, and family pictures, everywhere.  I feel her smile and her love of life in everything, and of course I feel that love always because it was so very strong in everything Morgan chose to do.

At the same time the story of her death becomes part of the legacy in a lawless county of Colorado, and what it has meant for so many others, step by plodding step.  Fresh experiences with so many new twists, new turns and new surprises fill today, three years after the day she had every last thing so viciously stripped from her.

We all lost the bright shining light that is Morgan three short years ago.  Her puppy Wylah seems to be watching her mom sometimes…and she is starting to get over the fear she has had of that certain type of young man ever since Morgan’s sudden death.  Morgan’s kitty Mo has never really repeated his very vocal, ma… ma, since Morgan’s death – he knows she is no longer right here, and our family dog Tessi still stops in her tracks and turns to look whenever she hears Morgan’s name called out.

For Toni and I learning new truths never seems to stop. The desire to fill in the blanks goes on too.  They feed each other, and both continue to be so important to us.  But then they have their own internal schedule as if not to release too much all at one time. We both think we could have handled it, only deep inside we both know that would not have been possible.  The ever unfolding truth about Morgan’s death has been precipitated by unseen events I have no control over, and they continue to happen, entirely on their own circadian rhythm.  The unchanging truth just keeps managing to bubble up with new bits and pieces of evidence, whenever and wherever it wants to.  I can sense that what at first was manifestations of lies and deceit by others sworn to protect her is now borne so much more of guilt and fear by these very same people.

We wish to never lose the tiniest slice of who Morgan was, her intense caring, nurturing and of course uncanny ability of seeing it all on a more simple straightforward prism of life.  How she could distill it all into just that one point.  Of course it might have taken her an entire poem to completely express that one point, but that was Morgan.  Her presence and abilities are always missed. There is such a growing knowledge and understanding of how the selfish uncaring and vindictive lives of others can touch us all through what happened to Morgan.  For some people Morgan is closer now than she has ever been in the three long years since her death.  To be able to feel how strong she is brings such comfort, and is such a blessing.

While the world moves on today Toni and I will take a moment to let time just stop for us this moment. We’ll allow all things Morgan to permeate as much as they wish. We’ll look at pictures, watch videos, read her pose and share our memories.  A light that bright can’t be allowed to have been extinguished from the world completely and forever.  We intend to let her memories burn brighter and touch us more deeply than ever as we go forward from today.

And to all of you who have followed and learned from the story of Morgan, you have gained a little sense of just what she meant to this world.  And there are so many who knew Morgan and could add immeasurably to that little sense which has begun with her story.  That one particular part, friends who really knew Morgan, adding to her ever growing story.  That specific part, Toni and I both want to happen more and more, and I know that it will, because an eerie frightening darkness of deceit that began with her death has managed to live on – day by day, even minute by minute – that darkness needs to be pierced through now.  Not only for the causes she started and had begun to dedicate her life to need full reign to blossom and move onward, but even more the tragic actions of stalking that stole first her freedom and then her life need to be fought on her behalf.  Toni and I together, with so many other co-victims, know in our hearts this to be true, and more importantly in our actions we wish to make a real change so that others will not be made to suffer as Morgan did on that day, and how she has ever since.

The world will always have need for the love, the ideals and the deep, deep caring of Morgan… perhaps now more than ever.

We all love you Morgan, forever and ever.  Daddy.

Team Morgan it’s time – you are all needed, please lend her your help!

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“Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family.  Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.” – Jane Howard

And we have one, many actually… and you are all part of it!  When our family needed that extra strength and hope, so many wonderful people offered to help us in our quest for justice for Morgan.  Some of you have called yourselves, “Team Morgan,” and in my own mind I have always thought of you as earth angels!   I have been so grateful for every single offer of help and support.  We have been so fortunate to have assistance in so many differing areas of expertise.  Exposing the truth would never have come this far without all of it.  And now as Morgan’s case takes another step forward I invite everyone to join in.

I am extremely happy to announce that Northern Colorado Crime Stoppers, along with help from Families of Homicide and Missing Persons (FOHVAMP) is now circulating a reward poster for any information leading to the arrest of the person(s) involved in the unsolved homicide of our 20 year old daughter Morgan Ingram on December 2, 2011.

If every single one of you could please share this post with anyone, and everyone you know, I would greatly appreciate it.

reward.poster copyjpegI know there are people that know what happened to Morgan, and those people also know who is responsible.  We want those people to come forward to help solve this crime.  This is their chance to do the right thing, and to no longer hide in the shadows.  Sometimes people think that what they know will not make a difference, but rest assured every single small piece of information will help to tell the whole story.  Finding the piece that will finally tip the scale for Morgan is something I will never stop fighting for.  I have heard many stories of the threats made against, “snitches,” so far, and if you feel unable or fearful to speak your truth, then please know I have been assured you can remain absolutely anonymous.  Personally I feel that if you are forced to swallow the truth and keep it inside, then it eats at you.  It’s nature’s law.  I would like people to know that when you let the truth out the feeling you get is awesome and liberating!

I myself have wanted to desperately get out all the details, facts, and evidence that we have gathered over the past years, but I have had to hold back (from this blog) on a lot of information in the hopes that it can be used in a criminal case someday.  At times I admit I have let my anger get the best of me.  I could say, “What parent wouldn’t be angry?” but instead I would like to say because of Steve I have been blessed – he has held me back and shown me that sharing all the brutal ugliness we have uncovered is just not always helpful, and not always necessary, not yet anyway.  Things happen for a reason and they happen when they are suppose to happen…not just when I want them to happen.  What I have learned over the years is that justice is not going to come through anger or ego, only through facts, so I do the best I can to keep mine in check.  Facts come out at the correct time, not when I want them to, but when they should be released.

I can never stress enough, both to myself and to everyone whom I have contact with that my efforts are not only about the loss of our precious daughter, but about all the wrongs being perpetrated on other innocent victims every day, and what needs to change to prevent this from happening again.  Unfortunately, and horribly there are so many stories of many other people who are suffering, or have suffered great personal loss themselves.  What happened to Morgan is not an isolated case, while I pray the cover-up that has followed is an isolated case.  For the good of all, this has to stop somewhere.

The simple yet overwhelming truth is that for Morgan to have justice someday, unpleasant truths will eventually have to have to come out, and visit the light of day.  It should not be much of a stretch to see that this will be unpleasant for some, and for others it is something that they will want to avoid at all costs.  To those I say that for Morgan to have been victimized, then murdered, only to be victimized again, was horrific for her, and all those who knew and loved her so much.

The knowledge that pursuing justice for Morgan will lead to a very needed change in the way victims and co-victims are treated in the future is extremely important to me, and I know it would have been so important to Morgan as well.  I know that this fight for justice is not only being waged by Morgan’s family and friends, but also by complete strangers that want to help make changes for the better in this world  – I will probably never be able to explain it except to say there are forces at work that have been making the impossible possible in this fight.

So please I am asking you all now to share this blog, and this poster in any way you can.  This is a very powerful way you can help find justice for Morgan.

You can even print the poster and hang it anywhere you think it may be seen by people that may know something.  Especially in Newcastle, Glenwood Springs, Carbondale, Basalt, and Aspen, CO.  Coffee shops, sports shops, churches, grocery stores, colleges, anywhere that they will allow you to post this.  Thank you all so very much – with much love from the bottom of my heart!  

 Please help – Justice for Morgan!

***Criminals do “trip up” – they can’t help themselves…just found out that on 3/16/2014 Keenan was arrested again, it was in the local newspaper listed under recent crimes, posted by the Glenwood Springs Police (not the sheriffs).  His criminal record keeps growing, but for some reason he seems to be “protected” and nothing ever really happens to him – this is a question I continually ask myself.

2 years ago a college student writes to raise awareness

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AspentreesfallToday I was organizing my notes and I came across the following submission. I received it 2 years ago on September 9, 2012.  It was from a college student that had read the blog and wanted to submit a paper about Morgan’s stalking and blog to her Speech Communications class, but wanted to run it by me first.

I was very touched back when I first read it, and this time around I was just as touched…my heart swelled with happiness when I thought of all the young people over the last few years that have contacted me to let me know how they feel about what happened to Morgan.  These submissions have made me believe that awareness has been raised, and will continue to be raised by all those that have come in contact with this case.  To date this website has now had over 5 million visitors from over 115 countries.

Morgan will receive justice one of these days, and my hope is when that justice comes, and light overcomes the darkness, the illumination from Morgan’s story will have a far-reaching effect on this world.

To this young writer I say thank you again for sharing Morgan’s story!

Morgan Ingram

You’ve probably never heard of the name above.  I recently just came to know of the 20 year old woman, Morgan Ingram from Colorado.  I don’t know Morgan or her family personally, but I’ve just started reading about her.  I know of her dog named Wylah, I know she always had a camera in her hand, I know she was an amazing painter, I know she loved hanging out with her friends, I know she had a wonderful relationship with her family, I know she was enrolled in classes at a Colorado college. I also know she was stalked and terrorized for four months, and I also know she is no longer with us on this Earth.

Morgan’s stalking and terrorizing started on August 2, 2011.  At first, just hearing noises. Noises that sounded like a tree branch rubbing against a window, a bird flying into a window, or even just the sounds of a house settling at the end of the night.  However, for the Ingram family, this was simply not the case.  From August 2, 2011 until December 2, 2011 Morgan was a victim of stalking.  It started out slow and then slowly began to escalate.  From throwing pebbles at the window to banging on their frosted bathroom window when she was showering.  Morgan started sleeping in her parents walk-in closet in the master bedroom.  When she wasn’t at home, she was with friends.  Because of this stalker, Morgans life, her families life, and everyone else around her life was affected.

Yes, I know what you’re thinking.  ”Didn’t the Ingram’s call the police?”  Of course they did.  Many times.  Unfortunately, it took many months for this case to move from only a misdemeanor trespassing case to a felony stalking case.  There was plenty of evidence that proved they in fact had a stalker targeting Morgan; footprints outside of her window, someone trying to enter their home by pushing the buttons to their keyless entry door and even a distinct trail visible on Google maps of a trail from the woods into their backyard.  The signs were all there, unfortunately, due to their interpretation of Colorado law, the police would only treat this as a trespassing case as mentioned above.

On December 2, 2011, Morgan Ingram left this world.  She was found by her parents in her room unresponsive.  The official cause of death was ruled “natural causes” (of a 20 year old, really?!) and then 9 months later was changed to “suicide.”  Now, as stated before, I don’t know Morgan or her family, but I do know, just by the accounts her mom, Toni, has told the world in her blog, that Morgan would not commit suicide.  She loved life and everything good life had to offer.  Yes, she was stalked and terrorized almost every day for four months, but this girl was strong.  Stronger than anything life could hand her, and in my heart I believe, as do many others ( Morgan’s Blog averages 250,000 views a week) that she was in fact killed, and did not take her own life.

Morgan’s mom, Toni, and dad Steve, have started a blog.  A blog dedicated to finding justice for Morgan and raising awareness about stalking.  Everyday during the four months Morgan was terrorized, Toni kept a journal.   Toni detailed every incident that happened, every text message sent, every photo taken, and every phone call made.  They now type those journal entries into their blog on the day they happened exactly one year ago.   They are showing the world what they went through, what Morgan went through and what millions of others are going through.  They are raising awareness of the murder of her daughter, and more importantly, using every resource they can, to find the person responsible for Morgan’s death and bring that person to justice.

Please visit Morgan’s blog.  The more people aware of what happened to Morgan, the closer the Ingram’s are to bringing her killer to justice.  http://morganingram.com/wordpress/

The Ingram’s also have a Facebook page that you can visit and are encouraged to “like.” https://www.facebook.com/morgansstalking

Getting Away With #Murder in Colorado – maybe not for long

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FOHVAMPCREST  I would like everyone to know that there is hope out there. For example FOHVAMP, a non profit out of Denver, CO has made a huge difference in the fight for justice for many families over the years http://unresolvedhomicides.org/

Getting Away With Murder in Colorado

Colorado has a backlog of 1,600 unsolved murders dating back to 1970. The killers of these victims have never been prosecuted for these murders. They walk among us. They live in our neighborhoods. These murderers, who have escaped justice, pose a serious threat to the safety of every Colorado citizen.

Murder is a crime against the state. FOHVAMP maintains that when a case cannot be solved by local law enforcement in a reasonable period of time, the state has an obligation to step in.

For the past five years FOHVAMP has advocated a state-level cold case team to help investigate these unsolved homicides. The state bureaucracy has been unresponsive. In 2007, the legislature created a cold case team at Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) with only enough funding for a single analyst to collect data from law enforcement agencies.

FOHVAMP and the CBI make periodic comparisons to insure the accuracy of that data.

Families of Homicide Victims and Missing Persons Executive Director Rob Wells, President Mark Reichert, Vice President Tina Terry, and board member Diane Riechert recently spoke at The National Press Club in Washington D.C. to express the need for a National Cold Case Database. To their knowledge, FOHVAMP’s Colorado Cold Case Database is the first cold case database in the nation to have been compiled. Since 1970, in Colorado, there have been approximately 1,600 unsolved murders, which is 38% of all of Colorado’s murders during this time period. The number is lower than the national average, which the FBI estimates to be 42%.  And still 1,600 unsolved murders in Colorado is 1,600 too many.

The FOHVAMP members visiting Washington met with Florida Victim’s Advocate Ryan Backmann, of Compassionate Families, Inc. Ryan’s father was murdered in a robbery. His father’s murder is unsolved. Ryan is in the process of putting together a Florida Cold Case Database. With only one-third of the Florida jurisdictions reporting, there are 4,400 unsolved murders. Jacksonville alone has 1,400, nearly the amount for the entire state of Colorado.

FOHVAMP will keep you posted on the progress of The National Cold Case Database through their website and on their Facebook page www.facebook.com/FOHVAMP.

Families of Homicide Victims and Missing Persons, Inc. (FOHVAMP) is a nonprofit organization working in Colorado to find, support and empower families suffering from a loved one’s unresolved murder or long-time suspicious disappearance. They provide peer support, assistance with victim compensation, referrals and coordination with other organizations for services and assistance. They serve as a liaison with law enforcement agencies, provide criminal justice support and advocacy. They work with Universities on special studies, many of which have been published. They seek out victim’s families (co-victims) to assist. Every October, they host an Annual Meeting with guest speakers to bring together victim’s families and law enforcement.

This year‘s Annual Meeting is going to be held at the Brittany Hill Event Center in Thornton, Colorado on October 4th, 2014. Please go to their website to register for this event.  The price to attend is only $45 per person.  I would suggest getting your tickets now before they sell out.  The purpose of this meeting is to bring co-victims into a neutral area where they will be able to brush up on their knowledge of the current techniques being used in the investigation process as well as meeting with their detectives on a neutral platform. Their hope is that the Annual Meeting will be able to educate their co-victims and promote the proper tools and coping mechanisms to assist them in their daily lives, as well as with the progress in their cases. Often, it is only at this meeting that the co-victims have the opportunity to touch base with their Detectives annually. Through the Colorado Cold Case Task Force, FOHVAMP is trying to assist in making it a mandate that all coroners in the state need to attend a base line training and certification on how to successfully deal with a cold case as well as the basics of their role in that position. The hope is that this would need to be completed within one year of the coroner taking office.

CONFERENCE REGISTRATION TIME! 
Here’s FOHVAMP’s registration form for the Saturday October 4 annual conference at the Brittany Hill events center, Thornton, CO.
More info to follow, but speakers will include Silvia Pettem, Jerry Brown, Paul Meshanko, Kathy Sasak, and Ron Sloan — at Brittany Hill.
FOHVAMPANNUALMTG8.29.2014

If you know anyone that has had an unresolved homicide in their family or have a missing loved one please refer them to FOHVAMP – they will listen, and they do help…please take my word on this, I know because they have helped us with Morgan’s homicide.

If you can help connect them with a family of a victim of an unresolved homicide or long-time missing person that has a Colorado connection, please call Rob Wells at 202-497-4580, Kelly Fernandez-Kroyer at 720-937-8905, or send an email toinfo@fohvamp.org.

These families need to know about FOHVAMP. They can help them.  They need and want your help. Their priority is to encourage law enforcement to effectively address old, unsolved murders.

Thanks so much!

 

The Morgan Ingram Memorial Theatre Scholarship – 2 more students have been selected…congratulations!

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On January 6th I received a manila envelope in the mail and opened it. It was from the  Colorado Mountain College Foundation…I started to read the first letter, and I cried, and cried like a little baby. They were tears of happiness and gratitude. It was a letter to inform me about the 2 students that have been selected as the recipients of the Morgan Ingram Memorial Theatre Scholarship for CMC Theatre Degree students for this current academic year.

They were thanking Steve and I for being instrumental in providing financial assistance to these students as they pursue their academic and career goals. All I could think of was how happy and grateful I was that the Memorial Theatre Scholarship that we set up in Morgan’s name is still helping students to achieve their goals.  Morgan would be so very happy. Her heart was bigger than life, she was an amazing person who touched everyone she came in contact with. She truly enjoyed her involvement at Colorado Mountain College and constantly emphasized her appreciation of education by encouraging others to continue their education, and pursue their own passions.So I want to congratulate Bella Barnum and Shelby Lathrop for being the selected recipients of the scholarship for the current academic year. I know Morgan is so very proud of you both – you will both go far I know.Bella thank you for letting me know that the beauty of Morgan’s smile greets you every morning (Morgan’s picture is in the case) in the New Theatre space and inspires you to do your best. That is so beautiful, and it fills my heart to hear.

And Shelby you have many dreams, but I can tell that you will work hard to achieve them…working hard you will realize those dreams, and I am so happy for you!

I hope that the Morgan Ingram Memorial Theatre Scholarship for CMC Theatre Degree Students keeps receiving support from around the world in Morgan’s name and many others can be assisted as they pursue their dreams.

If you are interesting in donating to this scholarship (and thank you so much to those who have already donated to the scholarship fund) please contact Carol J. Efting she is the Scholarship and Records Coordinator, Colorado Mountain College Foundation, P.O. Box 1763, Glenwood Springs, CO 81602, Phone 970-947-8378, Fax 970-047-8385 www.cmcfoundation.org and please let her know you would like your tax-deductible contribution to be directed towards the Morgan Ingram Memorial Theatre Scholarship for CMC Theatre Degree students. Thank you all so much – I know Morgan blesses you for it.

Colorado Mountain College Foundation | Glenwood Springs, CO 81601
www.cmcfoundation.org
Creating Better Futures