MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Saturday, loved ones of 29-year-old Kiara C. Cooper, who was shot and killed on September 13, remembered and celebrated her life.
Cooper used to run track, so her former Hamilton High School class of 2011 track and field teammates represented her in a mock track meet at Raleigh Egypt Stadium.
While many knew her as Kiara Cooper, her track team who finished her last run knew her as Pinky. It was the name they gave her because she had so much passion when she ran.
“Kiara was a shy person, but she was outgoing,” Coach Thurston Rubin Sr. said "She was very friendly, everybody loved her. She didn’t talk much, but when she did say something, it was powerful."
Cooper was a 100-meter hurdler and a 300-meter hurdler and ran on the four by one and four by two. Her teammates said Cooper ran hard because she did not like losing.
“She would cry, she was very competitive, but she would cry when it was hard,” Teammate Dorika Neely Bolden explained. "We all did, but her cheeks used to get really really rosy when she cried, so our coach started calling her 'Pinky.'"
It is why the team also named the event "Last run with Pinky."
Police said LaDarrin Ceazer shot and killed Cooper on September 13 in front of an apartment in the 1900 block of Asa drive in South Memphis.
Police said when they arrived, cooper was suffering from gunshot wounds, and by the time paramedics got there, she died at the scene.
Investigators said Cooper told Ceazer, who was her ex-boyfriend to leave before it all happened. This tragedy tore the hearts of many.
“I was sitting at my desk working when I got the phone call. I was shocked. I really didn’t know what to say, what to think,” Bolden expressed. “I started calling around, started calling my sisters and brothers. Started calling around to see if it was true, what happened, what was going on. Once they actually confirmed, we was devastated.”
Everyone at the track meet wore purple to raise awareness about domestic violence.
“Every young lady, or anyone that’s dealing with domestic violence, if you see signs, if you see certain things going on get away from it and if you see something, say something,” Rubin stated.
After the run, everyone said their farewells to Cooper in a balloon release.
Kiara’s funeral was on Thursday, September 22.
Records also show that Ceazer was charged with second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, and employment of a firearm during the commission of a violent felony.