Common thread of grief
By Ethan Smith
Published in News on March 26, 2017 12:00 AM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Tiffany Maddox claps in agreement as Tracy Martin, the father of Trayvon Martin who was fatally shot by George Zimmerman in 2012, gives a speech during a banquet to raise money for a scholarship in memory of her daughter A'Tiya TiJonna Maddox Saturday at the Dillard Goldsboro Alumni Cultural Center.
A common thread of tragedy and grief wove the audience and the keynote speakers together during a banquet at Dillard-Goldsboro Alumni Cultural Center Saturday night.
Tiffany and John Maddox, parents of the slain A'Tiya Maddox, remembered their daughter during the event.
A'Tiya was the victim of what remains an unsolved murder on July 22, 2016. Her death left her community and family in mourning.
The banquet culminated in a speech delivered by Trayvon Martin's father, Tracy Martin.
Trayvon's killing -- and the circumstances surrounding it -- gripped the nation in 2012.
The bond born from grieving the loss of a child at the hands of another brought Tracy to the banquet and allowed him to share his story with a community that has seen 44 homicides in the past five years -- 19 of which remain unsolved.
Families of those slain in the city attended the banquet to support the Maddox family and to hear Tracy's story.
Read more about the banquet in Monday's issue of the News-Argus