For Griggs, her son’s missing ring carried deep emotional value. “I could hold the ring in my hand, and it was like holding a part of him.”
DALLAS — What began as a visit for Virginia Griggs to her son’s resting place at Sparkman Hillcrest Funeral Home and Memorial Park in Dallas ended in heartbreak after treasured memorial items disappeared from his niche.
Her son, Robert Victor Gonzales, died in 1998 from a rare bone cancer at age 24.
“He would have been 53 this past March. To me he will always be 24,” Griggs told WFAA.
When Griggs visited the mausoleum in April, she discovered Gonzales’ SMU class ring and St. Christopher medals were missing.
“I couldn’t breathe. I mean, you cannot believe what you’re seeing.”
Sparkman Hillcrest confirmed to WFAA that a theft occurred in 2023 and said affected families were contacted through letters and phone calls. But Griggs says she never received any notification.
“That’s a total ball-faced lie and may they go to hell for it,” she said.
The funeral home said the incident was reported to the Dallas Police Department immediately and that staff “attempted to contact the individual by phone; however, the number on file was not in service.”
Griggs disputes that explanation. She tells WFAA the phone number they used was a landline number she hasn’t used in two decades. She also says that she routinely gets letters from the funeral home and Dignity Memorial so they have her correct contact information.
“No one ever even tried to notify me that the niche had been broken into.”
She also says there were no security cameras inside the mausoleum, something she believes should concern other families with loved ones interred there. Late Thursday, WFAA did attempt to confirm that detail about security cameras with the funeral home, but were unsuccessful.
The funeral home did send WFAA a full statement: “Unfortunately, we did have a theft at Sparkman/Hillcrest three years ago. At the time, we immediately reported the incident to local authorities and worked closely with them throughout the investigation. We also made every effort to notify families who may have been impacted, including placing phone calls and sending certified letters to ensure they were informed. In this particular case, we attempted to contact the individual by phone; however, the number on file was not in service.”
For Griggs, the missing ring carried deep emotional value and represented one of the few tangible connections she still had to her son.
“I could hold the ring in my hand, and it was like holding a part of him. That ring was the last solid thing of his that I had.”
Griggs now hopes Dallas police will add a photo of the ring to the theft report in hopes it may eventually be recovered.