THE mom of the three girls allegedly killed by their dad has spoken out for the first time since they were murdered.
Whitney Decker stood courageously, tears in her eyes, as she addressed the crowd of hundreds at a memorial service, sharing a heartfelt speech about her daughters and inviting others to mourn alongside her on Friday.
On May 30, Travis Decker took their daughters from Whitney for a scheduled custody visit and did not return them to their home in Wenatchee, Washington.
Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia Decker, 5, were found suffocated to death at a campground three days after the visit.
Travis has been on the loose ever since, prompting a manhunt that’s spanned hundreds of miles across rugged mountain terrain.
Four weeks after the day she last saw her daughters alive, Whitney paid tribute to the young girls on Friday.
The mom first thanked the crowd of 800 for wearing purple, pink, and green — the sisters’ favorite colors — at the service.
“You all look wonderful, and I know that [Evelyn] would have absolutely loved admiring all of your outfits,” she conveyed to the audience, as shown in a video broadcasted by local news source NCWLIFE.
She added through tears that Paityn would have given everyone a compliment, which she was known to do everywhere she went.
She went on to share about her daughters’ willingness to connect with others and feel their emotions.
Whitney says the girls practiced speaking about their feelings while working with therapists following Whitney and Travis’ divorce after seven years of marriage in 2022.
“After my divorce, there were a lot of feelings flowing through my house, as you could imagine — me going through a divorce with three small, tiny women,” she said at the podium.
The mom shared that at bedtime every night, the girls would talk about three emotions they felt that day and that they would never forget to ask their mom for her answer as well.
Whitney broke into tears as she continued, “I’m so thankful for the time I had with the girls and how the three feelings allowed us to connect when the world slowed down.
“It really gave me an inside look into their day. I believe doing this with them allowed them to come into the world with open hearts and kindness.”
She encouraged the crowd to practice speaking about three feelings each day in a way to honor the Decker sisters.
Timeline of the missing Decker girls
Paityn Decker, 9, Evelyn Decker, 8, and Olivia Decker, 5, were found dead at a campground after they were last seen on a custody visit to their dad.
Below is a timeline of events:
Monday, May 26
Travis Decker searches online for “how does a person move to Canada,” a Canadian job website, and “how does a person move to Canada.”
Thursday, May 29
Decker’s cell activity shows that he drove to and from the Rock Island Campground.
Friday, May 30
5 pm – The three girls are picked up from their mom’s house by their dad.
8 pm – Decker is supposed to return the girls but doesn’t. Their mom’s calls to him go straight to voicemail.
9:45 pm – Whitney Decker calls the Wenatchee Police Department to report her daughters missing.
Decker’s truck is seen driving westbound on Highway 2.
Washington State Patrol is contacted for an Amber Alert but said the situation didn’t match their criteria.
Saturday, May 31
WPD issues an Endangered Missing Persons Alert.
Monday, June 2
3:45 pm – Decker’s truck is found empty with bloody adult-sized hand prints at Rock Island Campground.
5 pm – Cops search the area and find the bodies of the three girls.
Tuesday, June 3
9:30 am – WPD notifies the public that they are still searching for Decker.
2 pm – WPD tells the public that the three girls were found dead and that Decker is still on the loose.
Friday, June 6
The girls’ autopsy report confirms that they died by suffocation.
Sunday, June 8
6 pm – Chelan County Sheriff’s Office hands the search for Decker to the federal authorities.
“I truly hope that the legacy of the girls’ lives lives in everyone’s heart forever,” she said.
“They were incredible.”
As the search for Travis, 32, enters its fourth week, Kittitas County cops said there is “no certain evidence” that he is alive or dead in the area, according to NBC affiliate KING-TV.
Travis is a former military member with outdoorsman skills and experience surviving in the wilderness alone for months.
Last week, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office said they believe Travis is still alive and on the run.
The update came a few weeks after a group of hikers saw a man walking alone, which cops said they believed was Travis.
Cops flew over the area of the sighting with helicopters, and the suspicious hiker sprinted off the train until he was out of sight.
Anyone who sees Travis is warned not to approach him as he’s believed to be dangerous and potentially armed.
