ORANGE PARK, Fla. \u2013 For more than a decade, the ashes of a 9-year-old boy have been sitting on a shelf in a stranger\u2019s garage, waiting to be returned to his family.<\/p>\n
The remains belong to Justin Khalief Davis, who was born in 2002 and died in April 2012, according to information engraved on a memorial chest found inside an abandoned storage unit off Blanding Boulevard.<\/p>\n
The unit was purchased at auction by David Purdom, who says he discovered the chest years ago while buying abandoned storage units in Orange Park \u2014 a business he said he was in long before it became popularized by reality television.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know that I\u2019ve had him for a long time,\u201d Purdom said.<\/p>\n
Purdom said the memorial chest sat in his garage for at least 10 years. When he first discovered the ashes, he attempted to locate Justin\u2019s family with help from the storage facility, but those efforts went nowhere.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey didn\u2019t have any forwarding address or anything or a name, and they couldn\u2019t get a hold of them,\u201d Purdom said.<\/p>\n
Purdom said storage units can be sold quickly once payments stop, and there are countless reasons a family may disappear from records.<\/p>\n
\u201cA number of things could have happened,\u201d he said. \u201cShe could have had a wreck or something. Anything could have happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Purdom said finding cremated remains in abandoned units isn\u2019t unheard of, this case stood out because the urn contained identifying information and because of the care taken with the memorial.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat box is not cheap,\u201d he said. \u201cThe funeral homes charge a lot of money for the urns and stuff, so she had money.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, more than 10 years later, Purdom said his goal is simple: to reunite Justin\u2019s ashes with his family.<\/p>\n
Asked how it would feel to finally find them, Purdom didn\u2019t hesitate.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d probably feel real good about it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Anyone who recognizes the name Justin Khalief Davis or believes they may know his family is encouraged to reach out to David or Crystal Meadows, who is helping with the search.<\/p>\n