Tearra Garrett killed in Jacksonville 1 year ago; mom collecting purses in daughter's memory

Friday marks one year since a local woman was shot and killed following an argument.

On the anniversary of her daughter’s death, you might expect Belinda Brownlee to be thinking of her daughter. And she is.

“The pain is never going to go away. It will get a little easier, but it’s never going to go away. There’s not a day or week that doesn’t pass (sic) that we don’t think about her,” she said.

But, she’s also thinking of others. Brownlee is collecting purses and other items for women and their families who may be struggling or going through a dark time.

“I want them to understand that they don’t have to go through with what my daughter went through,” said Brownlee.

Police said her daughter, Tearra Garrett, 23, was dropped off at UF Health Hospital with a gunshot wound. She died minutes later.

Brownlee said that before her daughter was shot, she had been in a car with her boyfriend. She said the two had been arguing, and she was told Garrett had pulled out her boyfriend’s gun and the two had fought.

STORY: Jacksonville police: Woman dies after being brought to hospital with gunshot wounds

“By her being gone, I don’t think I’ll ever get the truth,” said Brownlee.

While she may never know what happened in that car, she hopes to keep her daughter’s memory alive while helping other women.

“It will give them the hope that somebody out there thinks of them just enough to get them something this small, and maybe something small will grow this big,” she said.

If you would like to donate, contact Brownlee at 904-235-3828

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Cox Media Group