Hundreds gather to remember West Philadelphia woman killed while dropping off her grandchild
PHILADELPHIA - Friends and family came out Sunday to remember a West Philadelphia woman who was the life of the party.
It was a somber celebration, after police say 54-year-old Mary Johnson was found bleeding in the road after being shot in the neck Thursday.
Mary Johnson, or MJ as her friends called her, was a daughter, a mother, a grandmother and a friend to so many. Friends and family say MJ was an event planner, and she was always letting people into her home and helping them out.
"I’m gonna miss her so much", her sister Yvonnie Johnson said. "They don’t know what they took away from us. If they had known her they would have never harmed her."
Her loving legacy was even more evident by the amount of people who showed up for her balloon release on Sunday.
"Sometimes the victims and their families get lost. When that trigger is pulled it just doesn’t effect the person laying on the ground," said Pastor Patt Williams. "It effects the family; it effects the perpetrator; it effects so many."
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Police say no weapon has yet to be recovered, and no arrests have been made.
As they say goodbye to a woman who meant so much, the community says they expect leaders in Philly to make changes so that others don’t feel this pain again.
"You must do something about this gun violence," Pastor Patt said. "Allowing people and children to carry guns willfully and think it’s okay to shoot and kill people who really were an innocent bystander."