Clergy plan words of comfort in missing girls' town

• Authorities believe two bodies discovered by hunters are those of cousins missing since July

EVANSDALE, Iowa -- The words on a church welcome sign here Thursday read: "Our Christmas prayer this year: Bring home Elizabeth and Lyric safely."

On Friday, the sign at St. Mark's United Methodist Church had been changed: "Welcome home Lyric & Elizabeth, You are safe in my arms now — God."

For nearly five months, members of this Black Hawk County community have anxiously waited to learn the fate of two young cousins who disappeared while riding their bicycles on July 13.

In that time, a new school year started. Halloween and Thanksgiving came and went. And the December holiday season began. Each of the families held a birthday celebration for an absent girl.

On Thursday, holiday preparations came to a halt as news filtered through the community that authorities were confident two bodies discovered by hunters in a Bremer County park were those of Lyric Cook-Morrissey and Elizabeth Collins. The girls were 10 and 8, respectively, when they disappeared.

Those hoping that a Christmas miracle would bring Lyric and Elizabeth home for the holidays now are resigned to a smaller comfort: knowing that the nightmare of wondering "what if" is over.

What if they're cold? Hungry? Scared?

"Yes, it's a tragedy for those who are left behind, but the girls, they're in the arms of the Lord, and they're safe," said the Rev. Doug Thorpe, pastor at St. Mark's.

Family and community members who searched and prayed for Lyric and Elizabeth now are mourning together.

In their sermons Sunday, clergy in Evansdale and surrounding communities plan to counsel their congregations. Thorpe will remind listeners that it is the people left behind who now are suffering.

"We don't grieve as much for them but for the loss of their presence with us, and that's really where we have to deal," he said. "We have to address the needs of the people who are left."

The pain that follows such a tragedy can cast a dark cloud over the holidays, but it is the very birth Christians celebrate this time of year that brings hope for friends and family that they will see the girls again, pastors said.

"This type of thing has the ability to ruin Christmas, but I like to remind people that, in a way, Christmas ruined death," said the Rev. Joe Dapelo of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Evansdale. "Christ came into the world to ruin death; to provide hope and the promise of eternal life."

Still, even for those who believe the girls are in heaven, earthly questions persist: Who harmed the girls and why? Will the person or persons be found?

"I hope they are able to find the culprits involved and the whole extent of the law will be enacted," Thorpe said. "But realistically, we know that might not happen either. That's where, to me, the tragedy lies."

Little can be said to console the girls' families, but the knowledge that community members are thinking of them can help ease the pain, the pastors said.

After all, how terrible would it be if two young girls needlessly died and no one cared? Thorpe asked.

"There are no words that bring comfort, but your presence there brings comfort," said Reggie Hovenga, the Care and Outreach pastor at Heartland Vineyard Church in Cedar Falls, where Elizabeth's family worships.

Even with a circle of support, though, grief will move at its own pace.

"There are no time constraints on grieving," Dapelo said. "It may get easier at times, but it will last forever for some people."

Hovenga and other pastors from Heartland have visited with the family throughout the week to sit, pray and, and above all, listen.

Misty Cook-Morrissey, Lyric's mother, is a member of Heartland's sister church, Countryside Vineyard, in Evansdale.

Both families say they have relied on their faith for strength and comfort over the past five months. Their composure has helped bring solace to others who have found themselves struggling with the disappearance.

"They comforted us, even when we were supposed to be comforting them," said Julie Morrow of Evansdale.

That's a story Hovenga has heard numerous times.

"They're my heroes," he said of the families.