Uvalde Mother Shares for First Time About Her Tragic Loss

April Elrod is the loving mother of Makenna Lee Elrod who was a victim of the Uvalde, Texas school shooting tragedy. April recently said that because Makenna loved butterflies so much, they were released at her funeral in June. 

This grieving mother described how where some of the butterflies landed was a sign to their family and it felt like their 10-year-old daughter was speaking to them.

“One landed on my shoulder, one landed on her sister’s shoe, which is silly because Makenna is three years younger than her sister but they were the same size shoe and they always fought over shoes,” said April Elrod. She spoke with ABC News for the first time since the horror of May 24. 

April said, ”One landed on her daddy’s tie.”

April recently got a tattoo in Makenna’s honor. She already had flowers on her forearm that represented each of her four children. Now there is a butterfly that sits above Makenna’s flower. 

She has also asked a Georgia woodworker named Sean Peacock to make her two benches that are shaped like butterflies in her daughter’s honor. What she did not expect was that he would make them for free. 

In fact, Peacock honored all 21 victims with butterfly benches of their own. He used money raised from a GoFundMe account. April called her encounter with Peacock a “blessing.” And he said that the donation has become a “love story.”

“He and I’ve been talking since and when I’m having a bad day, he just seems to be the one that messages and says you know, we’re praying for you,” Elrod said. “Her story has brought people closer together. And I mean, what more can you ask for?”

All of the benches were unveiled at a prayer vigil held on Monday in Uvalde, Texas at the Town Square. They were placed alongside crosses that had been put up next to the town’s fountain in honor of each victim. Many were adorned with teddy bears, photos, and flowers.

Families of several victims joined the Elrod family at the vigil, admiring the benches as the sun went down.

April closed the interview by saying, “I feel like we’re gonna keep Makenna’s memory alive because we’re gonna love big, like Makenna did.”

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