TAMPA, Fla. -- It happens with many memorials. They go up and then fade away. But, some are determined to make sure the mother and young daughter killed on Bayshore Boulevard will not be forgotten.
Driving down it, you’ll notice the large memorial for Jessica Raubenolt and her daughter Lillia.
Zhenya Nichols lives down the street and she wants their memories to be planted forever.
“We have to do something to honor the deaths of these people who died for nothing,” she said.
Zhenya did not know the mother and daughter killed last week while crossing Bayshore. But, was touched by their story and even attended their memorial.
“This man lost everything,” she said, referring to the husband and father, David.
“We still have something to lose, and I feel like we need to preserve it.”
So, Zhenya came up with the idea to create a fitting memorial. Plant lilies, which was Lillia’s favorite type of flower.
“Something beautiful. Something blossoming can sprout out of that. Something that will mean something to people and it will be a monument of life,” she said.
“Somebody came up even with the idea and it’s a wonderful idea…and easiest to be done is to paint a mural on the pavement.”
The hope is that people will remember the two lost and remember to slow down when driving on Bayshore.
Zhenya says they’re working with the city and she hopes to see something by the end of the summer.
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