Nashville — The mother of DeEbony Groves, who was among four shot dead at a Nashville-area Waffle House in April, has accepted her daughter’s college diploma during a tearful commencement ceremony.
Shirl Baker was accompanied by Groves’ brother, Di’Angelo Groves, who also received his diploma Saturday and wiped away tears when officials at Nashville’s Belmont University announced a social work scholarship in his sister’s honor, according to local media outlets.
Baker received a standing ovation as she walked across the stage in her daughter’s place Saturday. Meanwhile, Belmont President Robert Fisher told the commencement crowd that “while our hearts were broken, today we have the chance to celebrate DeEbony’s life together.”
During his commencement address, Fisher recalled that Groves, who majored in social work, had sung a hymn moments before she died on April 22, local TV station WTVF reported.
"And that's the higher power that inspired the last reported words of DeEbony Groves as she and her friend were singing Yes Jesus Loves Me just before she departed that Waffle House for heaven's gate," Fisher said.
The suspect in the shooting, Travis Reinking, who was captured after a feverish manhunt, is facing multiple charges, including four counts of criminal homicide.
