FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — A northeastern Indiana elementary school has dedicated a memorial garden to a 9-year-old girl who was slain last December.
Monday's dedication honoring Aliahna Maroney-Lemmon came one day before Holland Elementary School's students are released for summer vacation. The garden includes a custom-made bench and a rug with Aliahna's name and her favorite character, Tinkerbell.
Aliahna's third-grade teacher, Shannon Harris, and her students planted a dwarf lilac bush Monday in the Fort Wayne school's courtyard outside their classroom. Harris tells WANE-TV (http://bit.ly/M0zcWC ) that just like Aliahna the bush won't ever grow large.
Last month, 39-year-old Michael Plumadore pleaded guilty to bludgeoning Aliahna to death before dismembering her body at a Fort Wayne trailer park where he had been looking after her and her 6-year-old sisters while their mother was ill.
___
Information from: WANE-TV, http://www.wane.com/
