LIVINGSTON, Texas — Family, friends, and members of the community gathered to remember 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham at a memorial Wednesday evening in Livingston.
The memorial began at 6 p.m. at 3300 U.S. Highway 190 in Livingston. Those who attended were asked to bring candles and wear purple in her honor.
Audrii's body was found Tuesday in the Trinity River near US-59, Polk County Sheriff Byron Lyons announced.
Where her body was pulled from the water now serves as a growing memorial and a place to grieve.
“She was perfection,” said Audrii’s mother, Cassie Matthews.
Matthews said her daughter is now looking down on them from Heaven.
“Hopefully, with all of our candles together, it’ll be bright enough that maybe she can see it,” Matthews said.
Family friend, Rebecca Attaway, said Matthews is inconsolable.
"She had this end goal she was going to be reunited with her baby and now she's not. He's a monster and he took that from both of them," Attaway said.
Parents of children who were friends with Audrii said they’ve had the difficult task of telling their kids what happened to their classmate and why she isn’t coming back.
“I had to sit down and explain to my six year old and my ten year old that she’s no longer with us,” said Kasey Evans, the mother of one of Audrii’s schoolmates.
Others cried as they realized they will never see Audrii again.
“We will not have her walking through our doors anymore but instead having her walk beside us in faith,” said Cassi Barker, the mother of one of Audrii’s schoolmates.
"She's 11 years old and she was innocent in all of this. A beautiful little girl who had a lot of life left in her," said community member Michelle Fees.
As the investigation moves forward and more details are released, the community holds their kids tight.
"We need to keep our kids close. We need to pay attention to who's in our homes, who we allow access to our children," Fees said.
Audrii's loved ones are now focusing on pursuing justice.
"This is for Audrii. We have to get justice for her. Something has to change in the future so it doesn't happen to anyone else," Attaway said.
MORE ON AUDRII CUNNINGHAM
"My heart aches with this news and I express with my deepest sympathy and condolences to everyone who knew, who cared for, and loved Audrii," Lyons said.
Audrii's body was taken to the medical examiner's office, which will determine the cause of death.
An arrest warrant was being prepped Tuesday for Don Steven McDougal, who was the main person of interest in the disappearance of Audrii. He will face a capital murder charge, District Attorney Shelly Bush-Sitton said. McDougal was already in custody after being arrested Friday on an unrelated aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charge.
The Trinity River Authority had to lower water levels to help with the search for Audrii. Lyons said when they found her in the river, her body was not visible to the naked eye.
Lyons said multiple pieces of evidence led to her whereabouts.
"There was evidence that we were collecting through the cellphone analysis as well as through our videos that we were able to collect and some of the information that we received from him [McDougal], we were able to pinpoint. There were several points of interest that was turned over to us, and thank goodness, by the grace of God, one of those places of interest, we were able to locate Audrii."
Audrii went missing on Thursday at about 6:45 a.m. An AMBER Alert was issued after she didn't get off the school bus that day but investigators learned Audrii never made it on the bus that morning nor went to school.
Investigators believe the last person to see her was McDougal. McDougal is a family friend who lives in a camper behind the home where Audrii lived with her father and other family members, Lyons said in a news conference Monday.
McDougal admitted to leaving the house with Audrii on the day she disappeared but would not tell investigators if she made it to the bus stop. Lyons said he would sometimes take Audrii to the bus stop or drive her to school if she missed the bus.
During the search for Audrii, the sheriff said there were occasions when McDougal worked with investigators and took them to certain locations, but he didn’t confess to anything.
Who was Audrii Cunningham?
Audrii was a 5th-grade Livingston ISD student.
"While the details of this tragedy are still unfolding, our hearts go out to the entire community during this heartbreaking loss," the district posted to its Facebook page the day Audrii's body was found.
Audrii's mom, Casey Matthews, said Audrii was a great child who was smart, fun, caring and had so many opportunities ahead of her.
"She should be at home where we know she's safe, and she's warm, and she's fed, and she should be with her little brother. She should be doing what Audrii does -- smiling, laughing, making everybody else smile and laugh," Matthews told KHOU 11 News on Friday.
Matthews pleaded for any and all help when it came to finding her daughter.
"I’m not going to be the same unless my baby is returned to me and neither is her family," she said Friday.