GREENSBORO, N.C. — Six years — that's how long Shaquanna Hudson's family has been waiting for answers.
With Greensboro Crime Stoppers recently increasing the amount of reward money for information due to a donation from private sponsors, Shaquanna's mother, Lelia Hudson, is hopeful — that someone, anyone, will come forth with more information.
"I forgive the person — I'll never forget it, but forgive them," Lelia Hudson said.
May 2, 2018 — it's the day Shaquanna was taken from Leila and the rest of her family.
She was shot and killed off Finley Street in Greensboro; to this day, her mother has little to no answers.
"I don't want this to be a cold case; we need justice," Lelia Hudson said.
So, she continues to fight, spreading the word about who her daughter was any chance she gets. She said she had a heart of gold, and most notably, was a loving mother to her four children. Four children that Lelia has taken care of ever since.
"She missed Mother's Day, you know… again. Her last child graduated from high school, getting ready to go to college. Last year, she had her first grandchild," Lelia Hudson said.
Her heart breaks for those kids and herself; she misses her daughter's smile but mainly her nightly phone calls, "every night she would call me and tell me that she loved me."
After her daughter passed away, she started collecting elephants simply because they reminded her of Shaquanna.
"I still have my days, you know? I still miss her, you know? I'm always gonna miss her," Lelia Hudson said.
But it goes even deeper than that, just like elephants have good memory, so does Lelia. She said she will never forget her daughter or what happened to her.
Lelia Hudson mentioned how much it hurts her to see murders on the news solved only weeks after the fact. Her heart breaks even more when it's at the hands of gun violence, similar to her Shaquanna.
"It's time to put the guns down. You know? It's terrible. And to lose your life to gun violence, it's very hurtful. You know and it's a nightmare I live with every night, I can't stand to hear it and see it on the news or anything," Lelia Hudson said.
Lelia Hudson and Greensboro Crime Stoppers stress that it doesn't matter how big or small you think a tip might be; it could be the tip that leads investigators down the right path and could bring justice to these families.