UVALDE, Texas – Dream big, love bigger.
That’s how Makenna Elrod Seiler’s parents want you to remember their little girl, who was one of the victims in the Robb Elementary shooting in Uvalde on May 24.
”The animals that are on her mural, that’s her dog, Bailey, and her daddy’s horse, Dude,” said April Elrod, Makenna’s mother, while standing across the street looking at her daughter’s mural.
“She was so excited to show steers. She wanted to do that worse than anything,” Makenna’s dad, Chris Seiler, added.
Makenna’s passion for all animals is clear by looking at her mural.
Tonight on the #NightBeat we are honoring Makenna Elrod’s memory and love of animals. Her mom, April, is partnering with Uvalde County 4-H to create a scholarship in her name. We’ll tell you all about it and how you can help keep this scholarship going tonight @ 10 @ksatnews pic.twitter.com/cIUF0s1huP
— Leigh Waldman (@LeighWaldman) November 21, 2022
“She had a connection with animals for sure,” Chris said.
Makenna’s parents love visiting the mural. April said it looks like her daughter could just walk off the wall, complimenting how the artists captured the green specks in her big brown eyes.
The yellow butterflies flying around her -- April and Chris say they’ve been a constant presence since her death.
“Even in this cold weather, like every day, I’ve seen butterflies. And I feel like it’s a sign that she gives us that everything is going to be OK,” April said.
When Makenna wasn’t playing softball or flag football, she was on the back of a horse. Makenna was looking forward to the day she was old enough to show animals on her own in 4-H.
“We’re just trying to give back, you know, to a student here in our community a future that Makenna didn’t get to have,” April said.
In partnering with the Uvalde County 4-H to create a scholarship in Makenna’s name, they hope the recipient honors their daughter’s life.
Right now, they’ve raised about $2,000. In order to get the scholarship endowed, it needs to reach $25,000.
If you’d like to donate, click here.
“I hope this helps someone that is struggling to get there, and she would too,” Chris said.
They want her name never to be forgotten.
“The day that I dropped her off at school, I saw her stop and say good morning to every single person that she’d pass on the sidewalk. That’s how she was. She made sure everybody felt loved,” April said.