Jonathan lost his life at the hands of a murderer. He had gone bicycle riding with a good friend. Both boys never returned home. Their bodies were found in a makeshift fort. They are loved and missed by their friends and family.
(Please see also Charlie Keever, his friend who lost his life with him.)
April 8, 2012: Park to honor boys slain in 1993
SOUTH COUNTY — Boyhood friends Charlie Keever and Jonathan Sellers, murdered 19 years ago in the South Bay, will finally have a county park in their name, and their mothers will finally have a vigil to honor them and all slain children. A candlelight vigil in memory of Jonathan Sellers, Charlie Keever and all slain children will be held from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. April 12 at the Swiss Park Banquet Hall, 2001 Main St., Chula Vista. Attendees are asked to bring a picture of their loved one for a memorial table. The vigil is sponsored by the Jonathan Sellers & Charlie Keever Foundation. For more information, go to jonathanandcharlie.bbnow.org. The county Board of Supervisors on March 27 approved spending $175,000 for the Jonathan Sellers & Charlie Keever Educational Activity Center, a small park adjacent to the Bayshore Bikeway on the southern edge of San Diego Bay. And on April 12, a candlelight vigil will be held in Chula Vista to remember the boys and all children who have been the victims of a homicide. Jonathan's mother, Milena Sellers-Phillips, has been pushing for the park and vigil ever since getting involved two years ago in the search for Poway teenager Chelsea King, who went missing after going for a jog in a Rancho Bernardo park. Five days later, the 17-year-old's body was found by Lake Hodges. Registered sex offender John Gardner III pleaded guilty to the murder and to the murder of Amber Dubois, 14, who had disappeared the year before from Escondido. Gardner is now serving a life prison sentence. Chelsea's disappearance reminded Sellers-Phillips of the pain she felt when her 9-year-old son Jonathan, and his friend, 13-year-old Charlie Keever, were kidnapped on March 27, 1993, and killed by a sadistic sexual predator. "It helped me know that I wanted to do something," she said, to honor the boys. Helping her was Charlie's mother, Maria Keever, but she gives much credit to Sellers-Phillips for getting a park built and named for the boys and for organizing the April 12 vigil. "Milena has been ruffling some feathers lately," Maria Keever said. Their sons disappeared after going to buy burgers and candy on a Saturday afternoon. They were returning home on their bicycles along the banks of the Otay River when they were abducted. Two days later, their bodies were found inside a man-made brush enclosure by the river bank. It would be eight years before DNA connected the killings to Scott Erskine, who was already serving a 77-year sentence for the brutal rape of a woman that happened six months after the boys were killed. He was sentenced to die for killing Jonathan and Charlie and has been on death row at San Quentin since 2004. While standing at the spot where the park in honor of the boys will be built, Maria Keever said, "It feels good that a lot of people still remember us. For me sometimes, it feels like it happened in another world, another time. Sometimes it feels like it happened last week. It's just up and down, up and down." The Chelsea King/Amber Dubois drama that unfolded in the media in 2010 brought back many memories and was a catalyst for Milena Sellers-Phillips. After the deaths of Chelsea and Amber, Sellers-Phillips decided last year to pursue a park that a politician had promised nearly two decades ago to honor Jonathan and Charlie. She went to see San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders, who had been police chief when the boys were killed. He suggested she and Keever go to the county, which they did and began working with Supervisor Greg Cox. Nine months later, the county supervisors approved construction of the small park at the end of 13th Street overlooking San Diego Bay in Imperial Beach, less than a mile from where the boys died. The action came on the 19th anniversary of the day the boys were abducted and killed. The park is "such a beautiful place," Seller-Phillips said, as she looked out toward the bay and the San Diego skyline. "This is such a positive, positive thing."
(Please see also Charlie Keever, his friend who lost his life with him.)
April 8, 2012: Park to honor boys slain in 1993
SOUTH COUNTY — Boyhood friends Charlie Keever and Jonathan Sellers, murdered 19 years ago in the South Bay, will finally have a county park in their name, and their mothers will finally have a vigil to honor them and all slain children. A candlelight vigil in memory of Jonathan Sellers, Charlie Keever and all slain children will be held from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. April 12 at the Swiss Park Banquet Hall, 2001 Main St., Chula Vista. Attendees are asked to bring a picture of their loved one for a memorial table. The vigil is sponsored by the Jonathan Sellers & Charlie Keever Foundation. For more information, go to jonathanandcharlie.bbnow.org. The county Board of Supervisors on March 27 approved spending $175,000 for the Jonathan Sellers & Charlie Keever Educational Activity Center, a small park adjacent to the Bayshore Bikeway on the southern edge of San Diego Bay. And on April 12, a candlelight vigil will be held in Chula Vista to remember the boys and all children who have been the victims of a homicide. Jonathan's mother, Milena Sellers-Phillips, has been pushing for the park and vigil ever since getting involved two years ago in the search for Poway teenager Chelsea King, who went missing after going for a jog in a Rancho Bernardo park. Five days later, the 17-year-old's body was found by Lake Hodges. Registered sex offender John Gardner III pleaded guilty to the murder and to the murder of Amber Dubois, 14, who had disappeared the year before from Escondido. Gardner is now serving a life prison sentence. Chelsea's disappearance reminded Sellers-Phillips of the pain she felt when her 9-year-old son Jonathan, and his friend, 13-year-old Charlie Keever, were kidnapped on March 27, 1993, and killed by a sadistic sexual predator. "It helped me know that I wanted to do something," she said, to honor the boys. Helping her was Charlie's mother, Maria Keever, but she gives much credit to Sellers-Phillips for getting a park built and named for the boys and for organizing the April 12 vigil. "Milena has been ruffling some feathers lately," Maria Keever said. Their sons disappeared after going to buy burgers and candy on a Saturday afternoon. They were returning home on their bicycles along the banks of the Otay River when they were abducted. Two days later, their bodies were found inside a man-made brush enclosure by the river bank. It would be eight years before DNA connected the killings to Scott Erskine, who was already serving a 77-year sentence for the brutal rape of a woman that happened six months after the boys were killed. He was sentenced to die for killing Jonathan and Charlie and has been on death row at San Quentin since 2004. While standing at the spot where the park in honor of the boys will be built, Maria Keever said, "It feels good that a lot of people still remember us. For me sometimes, it feels like it happened in another world, another time. Sometimes it feels like it happened last week. It's just up and down, up and down." The Chelsea King/Amber Dubois drama that unfolded in the media in 2010 brought back many memories and was a catalyst for Milena Sellers-Phillips. After the deaths of Chelsea and Amber, Sellers-Phillips decided last year to pursue a park that a politician had promised nearly two decades ago to honor Jonathan and Charlie. She went to see San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders, who had been police chief when the boys were killed. He suggested she and Keever go to the county, which they did and began working with Supervisor Greg Cox. Nine months later, the county supervisors approved construction of the small park at the end of 13th Street overlooking San Diego Bay in Imperial Beach, less than a mile from where the boys died. The action came on the 19th anniversary of the day the boys were abducted and killed. The park is "such a beautiful place," Seller-Phillips said, as she looked out toward the bay and the San Diego skyline. "This is such a positive, positive thing."
Jonathan lost his life at the hands of a murderer. He had gone bicycle riding with a good friend. Both boys never returned home. Their bodies were found in a makeshift fort. They are loved and missed by their friends and family.
(Please see also Charlie Keever, his friend who lost his life with him.)
April 8, 2012: Park to honor boys slain in 1993
SOUTH COUNTY — Boyhood friends Charlie Keever and Jonathan Sellers, murdered 19 years ago in the South Bay, will finally have a county park in their name, and their mothers will finally have a vigil to honor them and all slain children. A candlelight vigil in memory of Jonathan Sellers, Charlie Keever and all slain children will be held from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. April 12 at the Swiss Park Banquet Hall, 2001 Main St., Chula Vista. Attendees are asked to bring a picture of their loved one for a memorial table. The vigil is sponsored by the Jonathan Sellers & Charlie Keever Foundation. For more information, go to jonathanandcharlie.bbnow.org. The county Board of Supervisors on March 27 approved spending $175,000 for the Jonathan Sellers & Charlie Keever Educational Activity Center, a small park adjacent to the Bayshore Bikeway on the southern edge of San Diego Bay. And on April 12, a candlelight vigil will be held in Chula Vista to remember the boys and all children who have been the victims of a homicide. Jonathan's mother, Milena Sellers-Phillips, has been pushing for the park and vigil ever since getting involved two years ago in the search for Poway teenager Chelsea King, who went missing after going for a jog in a Rancho Bernardo park. Five days later, the 17-year-old's body was found by Lake Hodges. Registered sex offender John Gardner III pleaded guilty to the murder and to the murder of Amber Dubois, 14, who had disappeared the year before from Escondido. Gardner is now serving a life prison sentence. Chelsea's disappearance reminded Sellers-Phillips of the pain she felt when her 9-year-old son Jonathan, and his friend, 13-year-old Charlie Keever, were kidnapped on March 27, 1993, and killed by a sadistic sexual predator. "It helped me know that I wanted to do something," she said, to honor the boys. Helping her was Charlie's mother, Maria Keever, but she gives much credit to Sellers-Phillips for getting a park built and named for the boys and for organizing the April 12 vigil. "Milena has been ruffling some feathers lately," Maria Keever said. Their sons disappeared after going to buy burgers and candy on a Saturday afternoon. They were returning home on their bicycles along the banks of the Otay River when they were abducted. Two days later, their bodies were found inside a man-made brush enclosure by the river bank. It would be eight years before DNA connected the killings to Scott Erskine, who was already serving a 77-year sentence for the brutal rape of a woman that happened six months after the boys were killed. He was sentenced to die for killing Jonathan and Charlie and has been on death row at San Quentin since 2004. While standing at the spot where the park in honor of the boys will be built, Maria Keever said, "It feels good that a lot of people still remember us. For me sometimes, it feels like it happened in another world, another time. Sometimes it feels like it happened last week. It's just up and down, up and down." The Chelsea King/Amber Dubois drama that unfolded in the media in 2010 brought back many memories and was a catalyst for Milena Sellers-Phillips. After the deaths of Chelsea and Amber, Sellers-Phillips decided last year to pursue a park that a politician had promised nearly two decades ago to honor Jonathan and Charlie. She went to see San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders, who had been police chief when the boys were killed. He suggested she and Keever go to the county, which they did and began working with Supervisor Greg Cox. Nine months later, the county supervisors approved construction of the small park at the end of 13th Street overlooking San Diego Bay in Imperial Beach, less than a mile from where the boys died. The action came on the 19th anniversary of the day the boys were abducted and killed. The park is "such a beautiful place," Seller-Phillips said, as she looked out toward the bay and the San Diego skyline. "This is such a positive, positive thing."
(Please see also Charlie Keever, his friend who lost his life with him.)
April 8, 2012: Park to honor boys slain in 1993
SOUTH COUNTY — Boyhood friends Charlie Keever and Jonathan Sellers, murdered 19 years ago in the South Bay, will finally have a county park in their name, and their mothers will finally have a vigil to honor them and all slain children. A candlelight vigil in memory of Jonathan Sellers, Charlie Keever and all slain children will be held from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. April 12 at the Swiss Park Banquet Hall, 2001 Main St., Chula Vista. Attendees are asked to bring a picture of their loved one for a memorial table. The vigil is sponsored by the Jonathan Sellers & Charlie Keever Foundation. For more information, go to jonathanandcharlie.bbnow.org. The county Board of Supervisors on March 27 approved spending $175,000 for the Jonathan Sellers & Charlie Keever Educational Activity Center, a small park adjacent to the Bayshore Bikeway on the southern edge of San Diego Bay. And on April 12, a candlelight vigil will be held in Chula Vista to remember the boys and all children who have been the victims of a homicide. Jonathan's mother, Milena Sellers-Phillips, has been pushing for the park and vigil ever since getting involved two years ago in the search for Poway teenager Chelsea King, who went missing after going for a jog in a Rancho Bernardo park. Five days later, the 17-year-old's body was found by Lake Hodges. Registered sex offender John Gardner III pleaded guilty to the murder and to the murder of Amber Dubois, 14, who had disappeared the year before from Escondido. Gardner is now serving a life prison sentence. Chelsea's disappearance reminded Sellers-Phillips of the pain she felt when her 9-year-old son Jonathan, and his friend, 13-year-old Charlie Keever, were kidnapped on March 27, 1993, and killed by a sadistic sexual predator. "It helped me know that I wanted to do something," she said, to honor the boys. Helping her was Charlie's mother, Maria Keever, but she gives much credit to Sellers-Phillips for getting a park built and named for the boys and for organizing the April 12 vigil. "Milena has been ruffling some feathers lately," Maria Keever said. Their sons disappeared after going to buy burgers and candy on a Saturday afternoon. They were returning home on their bicycles along the banks of the Otay River when they were abducted. Two days later, their bodies were found inside a man-made brush enclosure by the river bank. It would be eight years before DNA connected the killings to Scott Erskine, who was already serving a 77-year sentence for the brutal rape of a woman that happened six months after the boys were killed. He was sentenced to die for killing Jonathan and Charlie and has been on death row at San Quentin since 2004. While standing at the spot where the park in honor of the boys will be built, Maria Keever said, "It feels good that a lot of people still remember us. For me sometimes, it feels like it happened in another world, another time. Sometimes it feels like it happened last week. It's just up and down, up and down." The Chelsea King/Amber Dubois drama that unfolded in the media in 2010 brought back many memories and was a catalyst for Milena Sellers-Phillips. After the deaths of Chelsea and Amber, Sellers-Phillips decided last year to pursue a park that a politician had promised nearly two decades ago to honor Jonathan and Charlie. She went to see San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders, who had been police chief when the boys were killed. He suggested she and Keever go to the county, which they did and began working with Supervisor Greg Cox. Nine months later, the county supervisors approved construction of the small park at the end of 13th Street overlooking San Diego Bay in Imperial Beach, less than a mile from where the boys died. The action came on the 19th anniversary of the day the boys were abducted and killed. The park is "such a beautiful place," Seller-Phillips said, as she looked out toward the bay and the San Diego skyline. "This is such a positive, positive thing."
