Community comes together to remember Janessa at vigil

Candles burned warmly and brightly in the Thursday evening heat as family and friends came together outside in Palmetto to honor the life and memory of 13-year-old Janessa Shannon.

Food was spread across a series of tables set up beneath white tents in the yard of Janessa’s family member, Clifford Shannon Jr. Cars crowded the street and neighboring yards as about 100 people pulled up to pay their respects and light candles to remember Janessa.

Those gathered formed a circle around the grieving family as prayers were said, songs were played and Bible verses read in an effort to begin to heal the broken hearts at the center of the circle. Family members folded over each other as tears fell.

“Janessa, she’s in a safe home now, with the Lord. She’s looking down on us,” Larry Mosley, Janessa’s grandfather said.

He remembered taking Janessa and her siblings to the beach, fishing and to the candy store as they grew up. Janessa attended most of seventh and eighth grades at the former Sara Scott Harllee Middle School in Bradenton.

But mostly, Mosley said he wished Janessa was there.

Fighting back tears, Linda Roberts remembered her granddaughter as an “angel” and an “amazing young lady” with a beautiful heart.

“She was very giving, very loving and really funny sometimes,” Roberts said. “She didn’t deserve this, and I pray they find who did it. I pray they do.”

Janessa’s body was found by a hiker in Hillsborough County 10 days after she was reported missing from her father’s Riverview home on July 2. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office is investigating Janessa’s death as a homicide.

Janessa was staying with her father, Nahshon Shannon, who previously told the Herald his 13-year-old daughter had been grounded after she was caught sneaking out of her mother’s house.

The family is still looking for answers. Mosley said they are still checking in with law enforcement for any updates in his granddaughter’s case. He hopes whoever is responsible for her death is brought to justice.

But Thursday’s vigil showed an outpouring of support from loved ones and members of the community. Singers and dancers performed, a small memorial in the shape of a heart was crafted from candles on the sidewalk, and co-workers of Michelle Mosley, Janessa’s mother, took the mic to share a few words of love and support after prayers were said over the family.

“I’m glad they came showed up to pay their respects,” Mosley said.

Wayne Washington said he organized the vigil so that the world would see how much this community, his community, loves their children.

“We’re not sweeping situations like this under the rug. We’re going to come together,” Washington said.

This story was originally published July 20, 2017 at 9:23 PM with the headline "Community comes together to remember Janessa at vigil."