Corrections Ofc. Mary Malcom said her heart was broken when she noticed the memorial had been destroyed a week ago, and took it upon herself to rebuild it.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A week after a memorial for three people killed in the mass shooting at a Jacksonville Dollar General in 2023 was destroyed, one Jacksonville woman took it upon herself to rebuild, with help from her family.
Mary Malcolm, a corrections officer with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, drives by the store on Kings Road after work every day, according to JSO.
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Malcom noticed the community-built memorial had been destroyed, and took it upon herself to rebuild the site with the help of her husband and nine children.
“If it was my family I would want someone to do the same for me,” Malcom told First Coast News.
JSO said in a Facebook post that Malcom told them she had never built a memorial before, but listened to what her heart told her to do.
“We are incredibly proud of Corrections Officer Malcom’s heart for her community, not just in this moment, but in every moment she serves Jacksonville,” JSO said in the post.
Angela Carr, Jerrald Gallion and A.J. Laguerre, Jr. were shot and killed in the racially motivated attack in 2023. The shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The memorial, which sits just outside the store on Kings Road, was originally created by community members to honor the victims.
On April 27, the three memorial displays were found heavily damaged. Two were completely destroyed, while all had photos torn from their frames and flowers scattered across the ground.
“This community needed help,” Malcom told First Coast News. “The family needed help. I am a servant from God and my job is to help people who need it the most. It’s about giving back and doing the right thing.”