AURORA — Mother's Day weekend is usually a happy time to celebrate mom. But it can be extremely painful and tough to get through for those who are grieving the loss of a mother or child.
Saturday, community members came together for a special Mother's Day event in Aurora. A Mother's Mourn Remembrance Brunch was held at the DoubleTree Hotel to honor mothers who have lost children.
"Mother's Day is one of the most difficult times that moms grieve," said Shay Jacobs, who is the executive director for Adam's Purpose, an organization that promotes grief awareness, advocacy and support.
Jacobs said she created the organization after losing her child, mother and niece in 2018.
"Out of that pain, I had to birth something," she said. "I was looking for support, looking for somewhere to go, to get some help."
Among those who also helped put the event on was Angel Shabazz, who also knows the pain of losing a child.
She started the organization A Mother's Love, a support group for moms who have lost children, after she lost her son, Davarie Armstrong, to gun violence nearly three years ago.
"I felt like this was a group that I needed to create so that we could go through this loss, this traumatic experience together," Shabazz said.
Davarie had just turned 17 when he was shot and killed at a party in the Montbello neighborhood in July 2020.
"He made sure that he kept a smile on his face," Shabazz said. "He made sure that he was just a role model. He was the oldest of my two that I have. He was a scholar athlete."
Shabazz said she will continue to keep her son's legacy alive and be there for other mothers so that they feel loved and supported.
