Shirellda Terry, 18, went missing July 10. Her family searched avidly, scouring the streets of Cleveland Heights rain or shine. They had asked for a tent donation through their online campaign to find her so they could set up on the street in inclement weather—never to take their eyes off the faces in the crowd, hoping always to catch a glimpse of their girl.
Terry’s body was identified Tuesday—one of three victims found wrapped in trash bags in an Ohio suburb. The other two victims were Shetisha Sheeley, 28, and Angela Deskins, 38.
Rosetta Terry described her granddaughter as a caring person who had a close relationship with her mother and often attended Bible study sessions.
“She was a good girl; she was a hugger,” her grandmother said. “We used to tease her that we were going to put her on a hug diet.”
A photo posted on the Facebook page set up to find Terry reads: “R.I.P. Rell. Youre an angel now.”
A message posted by the family on the page early Tuesday, before her body was found, reads: “Please continue to keep your eyes open, be aware of your surroundings, share this page and keep Shirellda in prayer as we continue our mission to bring her home safely.”
A message posted later Tuesday reads: “On behalf of the family, we would like to send a sincere thank you to everyone that came out and volunteered, said a prayer, posted a flyer, shared the page, whatever you did to help words can’t express how grateful we are. Keep us in your prayers, and we will keep you all in ours.”
Her family is hoping to change the way missing persons searches are approached, Terry’s stepsister, Melissa Minor, told NewsChannel5 on Wednesday. They found an obstacle in their search was the idea that Terry must have run away. The family knew this was not in her character.
The family’s pastor, Kevin Hannah, told NewsChannel5, “Believe it or not, in this day and time there’s still people who know their children and know their personality.”
Terry’s mother told NewsChannel5 off-camera that she wants to reach out to the family of young Taylor Robinson, who is missing from Akron, Ohio.
On the Facebook page for the find-Shirellda campaign, a user by the name of Angela W. wrote: “You’re such a strong family—you never, ever gave up. Rest in peace, Shirellda. You are much higher in the light, away from pain. Keep smiling and let your beauty shine.”
Michael Madison, a local sex-offender, has been charged with murdering the three girls and is in prison.
Sheeley, one of the three, came from a different background than Terry. She had a skirmish with the law last year for allegedly firing a weapon from a vehicle, though charges were dropped due to lack of evidence.
Her court-appointed attorney, Michael Nelson, told The Associated Press: “She lived on the edge.” No one posted her $1,000 bail while her charges were being processed. She lived alone, unemployed, struggling to make ends meet.
Deskins, who was the first victim identified, was supported by her family. She attended Cuyahoga County Community College and enjoyed basketball. On her Facebook page, she listed her employment status as “self employed in customer service.”
She was reported missing by family members once before the current incident. Police records show a report filed in 2009, according to Cleveland.com.
Her brother, Jermaine Padgette, wrote on his Facebook page on July 20 that he and others had looked for his sister that morning for hours. He appealed to people to “keep your eyes and ears open.”
On July 21, he wrote: “I miss my sister so much.”
“I’m hurt,” he wrote. “Help me.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
