Highlands Baptist Church has become a gathering place for a community in mourning. The sidewalk outside is covered with stuffed animals, balloons, and handwritten notes left as a memorial for Cherish Perrywinkle.
The 8-year-old's body was found near the church Saturday morning after she was abducted from the Walmart on Lem Turner Drive the night before.
Sunday night the pews of the church were filled as pastor Art Taylor told the crowd Cherish had gone from tragedy to triumph in Heaven.
As the ceremony moved outside, three of Cherish’s Sunday School friends led those gathered in song, as the young girl’s family-- her mother, stepfather and two sisters sat nearby wearing shirts with a photograph of Cherish on the front.
Marcus Williams runs the children’s ministry at Paxon Revival Center, where Cherish went to church and says she acted like a mother to the other children.
"She was one of those people that kept the kids in line when she had ones younger than her-- keeping them active, keeping them focused," he said. "So she will be missed."
Others who knew Cherish described her as an appreciative and helpful child who liked to draw and play dress up.
Some of those who came to pray didn’t know the family at all. Lisa Carter lives around the corner from the church, and brought an angel figurine which she pinned to the cross outside.
"My mom and I came just to be with other people and support the family. God help us, you know, it could be any of our children,” she said.
The man accused of kidnapping and murdering Cherish Perrywinkle, Donald James Smith, has pleaded not guilty to the crimes. He has been denied bond and remains in the Duval County Jail.
