Calgarians are finding their own ways to remember 11-year-old Parker Wells this weekend, as a growing campaign calls for a national alert system to help find missing neurodivergent people. Parker, who had autism, went missing last month, prompting a massive search involving hundreds of police officers and thousands of Calgarians. Nearly two weeks later, his body was found in a four-foot water pipe that was part of a larger network of pipes and tunnels. His family encouraged people to honour him this weekend through their own walks, outings and adventures. “We’re just celebrating Parker on a beautiful day,” said Chris Lindberg, who was at Shouldice Park with his two-year-old granddaughter. Across the city Saturday, people responded — from families spending time at parks and playgrounds to dog walkers and members of Calgary’s Muslim community. Titus Needham, who was walking his dog in Nose Hill Park, said he was thinking about Parker. “I’m just really sorry what happened to Parker,” he said. Members of the Islamic Supreme Council of Canada also gathered for an organized walk in Parker’s honour. “There are many children in our communities who have different kinds of challenges, autism and ADHD and many other issues and problems,” said Syed Soharwardy, founder of the Islamic Supreme Council of Canada and chairman of the Al Madinah Calgary Islamic Assembly. “We need to make sure that our children are safe, they are protected.” For some families, Parker’s story has hit especially close to home. Aamir Harrison and his family visited one of the memorials dedicated to Parker on Saturday. “We have a son also who is 11 years old, and he is autistic too,” Harrison said. “So we feel the pain of Parker as well.” Hundreds of people gathered at Calgary city hall last week following Parker’s death for a public vigil to mourn the 11-year-old and pay their respects. As Calgarians continue to remember him, his death continues to add momentum to calls for a new national alert system for missing neurodivergent people. An online petition calling for the creation of a national “Indigo Alert” has gathered more than 37,000 signatures. Organizer Jen Ball said the next step is to launch an official petition that can be presented in the House of Commons. “I had conversations with MP Mike Lake from Leduc-Wetaskiwin,” Ball said. “We need a member of Parliament to bring this petition into the House of Commons. And he’s going to do that.”
