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Phoenix community to honor memory of Cody Flom a year after he passed away while hiking

Posted at 6:00 AM, Jul 22, 2017
and last updated 2017-07-23 10:28:36-04

It has been a year since 12-year-old Cody Flom died while hiking in the north Valley and community members are taking action to honor his memory and bring awareness to the dangers of the Valley's trails on Saturday night. 

Dozens of community members, family and friends gathered for a candlelight vigil to remember the young boy.

"I would describe him as joyful and happy and always looking to the future," his cousin, Kaiya Sigaty, described.

On July 22, 2016, Cody was hiking Sidewinder Trail with his mother's friend when he collapsed and died. It was 112 degrees that day.

Cody's father Brian Flom and stepmother Heather still have no answers as to what led up to his death on Sidewinder Trail. They're waiting to hear from the county attorney whether the man who took him hiking will face any charges.

"Please take the case," Heather said. "Don't let his death be in vain. He deserves more than that."

Cody's family wants others to know the danger they're facing when taking kids on hikes in the summer heat.

"The heat is our natural disaster," Heather explained. "There's no escaping it. Especially that day..."

They want people to know Cody isn't just another statistic. He was a child with a family who misses him and whose lives will never be the same.

"He was and still is everything to me and he was robbed of everything. I can't teach him how to drive, look at colleges or talk about his first girlfriend. It's just an absolute avoidable tragedy and waste," Brian Flom told ABC15. 

The case is now in the hands of the Maricopa County Attorney's Office. Brian told the crowd at the vigil that he has a meeting scheduled with the county attorney on Monday.