Memorial bench installed at park in honor of Sydney Garcia-Tovar

BUTLER COUNTY, OH (WXIX) - A memorial is now in place at a park in Butler County, in honor of a teenager who was murdered in 2018.

The memorial bench was created to pay tribute to Sydney Garcia-Tovar and was installed at Smalley Park in Hamilton.

Sydney’s mother, Stephanie Garcia-Tovar, said her daughter spent a lot of time at the park.

“Looking at it was just crazy, and then I went to sit in it, and I started bawling like a baby. It felt pretty special to me to have it there for her since that’s where she always was,” Stephanie said.

Sydney was 16-years-old when she was shot and killed in Fairfield Township in 2018. Police said she was an innocent bystander.

To keep her daughter’s memory alive, Stephanie launched a fundraiser for the park project in May 2021. Within days, she says she exceeded her goal.

The extra donations were put toward a tree that was planted at the park, also in honor of Sydney.

“I can’t thank everybody enough,” Stephanie said. “It means more to me than they’ll ever know.”

With the memorial project complete, Stephanie remains determined to making sure Sydney is never forgotten.

She is now working on having the park renamed to be called “Sydney’s Park.”

Markylnd Townsend is facing charges of murder and felonious assault in Sydney’s case. He is scheduled to go on trial in Butler County in January.

See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please include the title when you click here to report it.

Copyright 2021 WXIX. All rights reserved.