Magi Bish still has trouble sleeping at night, 17 years after her daughter, Molly, went missing.

Tuesday morning she found herself awake at 3 a.m., worrying that no one would fill the seats in front of the Grand Staircase at the State House later that day for her 17th, and final, Missing Children’s Day.

Magi Bish and her husband, John, of Warren, have decided to say goodbye to the annual ceremony they have organized at the State House for families of missing children since their daughter disappeared in 2000. Molly Bish’s remains were found three years later, but her parents are still searching for answers.

After she steps away from her role as organizer of the ceremony, Magi Bish said, she hopes that the missing children will continue to be commemorated.

During the program, families of some of the 113 missing children in Massachusetts spoke and were presented with flowers — yellow roses and purple forget-me-nots. Photos of the missing children were projected on a screen in front of the stairs.

Some families said they have been waiting for answers as long as 40 years, while others said they would keep clinging to hope that their missing child is still alive somewhere.

Through tears, Humaira Niazi told the group of roughly 50 that she hopes her daughter, who could be 23 now, is out there somewhere.

Humaira’s daughter, Soomaiiah Quraiishi, was taken 16 years ago. Years later Soomaiiah’s father told Humaira that he had taken their daughter to Pakistan, where she had died with no explanation or documentation. It has since been ruled a family abduction.

Jennifer Novak lost her brother James “Jamie’’ Novak when he was 16 years old. She named her 11-year-old daughter in memory of her brother, hoping her child will carry on the memory of an uncle she never knew.

“I had no idea this could happen,’’ said John Bish, Molly’s father. When his daughter became a lifeguard, “the biggest thing I talked to her about was watching the children, never imagining that anything would happen to her.’’ Magi Bish said her daughter’s love has kept her coming back, every year. “She’s kind of a feisty one, and she doesn’t let me sit still. She says, ‘C’mon Ma, let’s go,’’’ said Magi Bish, who says she is recovering from a recent spinal surgery. John Bish has been hospitalized twice since September. They have been struggling with their health, and they said that they are no longer physically capable of organizing the ceremony.

Maddie Kilgannon can be reached at maddie.kilgannon@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @MaddieKilgannon.