PALATINE, Ill. (WLS) — The dad and mom of Romalice and Ro’Siah Brooks described the 2 brothers as inseparable, sadly, even of their last moments.
“I’m broken, but I know in time things will get better. But, right now, I don’t see it,” mentioned Teghan Ivy, their mom.
That mom recounted a second virtually too heartbreaking to fathom, telling ABC7 that she heard her kids’s cries, noticed them struggling within the water, however might solely watch helplessly for what appeared like an eternity.
The boys died after falling into an icy pond whereas visiting their grandmother’s house in Palatine on Wednesday afternoon.
Relatives mentioned 6-year-old Romalice and 4-year-old Ro’Siah have been greater than siblings. They have been one another’s keepers.
“I miss my boys. They fought. They fought so hard. They really did. And they together,” Ivy mentioned.
Their mom was inside when she mentioned she heard the unmistakable sound of her sons screaming out her identify.
“I heard them, ‘Mommy! Mommy!’ And, I came outside. I did the only thing I knew to do. I took off my shoes and I got on that ice and tried to get them. I didn’t make it to them. The ice cracked and I fell in, too. I tried!” Ivy mentioned. “It felt like forever waiting for them to get them out that water.”
The boys disappeared beneath the water to the sound of their mom’s pleas.
Both have been submerged for practically 20 minutes earlier than rescue divers introduced them to dry land, unresponsive.
Palatine firefighters pulled two kids from the water within the 800-block of Panorama Drive round 3:31 p.m., police mentioned. They have been taken to 2 separate hospitals, the place they died hours later.
“They heard us. They heard us in that hospital. And, they were fighting. They fought!” mentioned Romalice Brooks, the boys’ father. “But, they were in that water for an incredibly long time. One was in there for ten to 15 minutes. The other one was 15 to 20 minutes.”
An unthinkable heartache for any dad or mum is now a actuality for these two.
“It was a great experiment, and I am so sad that I could not complete that,” Brooks mentioned. “The most I can do is just remember the great times that I had with my boys. Experimenting with them as far as being a father that I wanted to be; the father that I did not have.”
The dad and mom mentioned their sons have been all the time collectively.
“They were the definition, like I said, of ‘my brother’s keeper,” Ivy mentioned. “Even to their final moments, they were together.”
Ivy confirmed ABC7 images of her sons adorning pumpkins for Halloween. Now, those self same pumpkins, together with their fingerprints and footprints, sit subsequent to their grieving dad and mom.
“They’re watching over us. Our guardian angels,” Ivy mentioned. “I’m thankful we were there to be there by their sides. We were able to talk to them. They heard us.”
On this vacation marred by tragedy, these dad and mom nonetheless grateful for the time and love their shared.
“Thank you for the best six and four years I’ve ever experienced. You boys have taught me so much, and I’m forever grateful for that,” she mentioned.
As the household grapples with this Thanksgiving tragedy, the boys’ funeral continues to be pending. The household is elevating funds for a correct burial. Their GoFundMe might be discovered right here.
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