SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio mother has spent the past eight years waiting desperately for San Antonio police to make an arrest in her daughter’s murder case.
Debra Seward, who is a minister and works as the community engagement coordinator of the San Antonio African American Community Archive and Museum, had her world turned upside down July 15, 2018 when her daughter was killed.
According to SAPD, her daughter Grace Seward, 24, and a friend were at a night club when they ended up in an altercation with two other people.
Police believe Grace Seward and her friend left, but were followed to a East Side home in the 100 block of Gorman Street by two people who got out of a vehicle and fired multiple shots, hitting Grace Seward and her friend.
Her friend survived, but Grace Seward passed away at the scene.
“I have a friend who lost her child tell me something I think about today,” Debra Seward said. “When a child that loses a parent, they are called an orphan. If you lose a spouse you are a widow or widower. What are you called when you lose your child? There are no words.”
Debra Seward remained faithful even though the weight of not knowing her daughter’s killers is heavy.
“It is heavy to know this is where my child took her last breath,” Debra Seward said as she stood exactly where the shooting took place eight years ago. “It is hard to relive this, but I have to continue to talk about what happened especially as we continue to seek justice.”
Despite that pain, Debra Seward said she finds things to smile about in her daughter’s memory.
“She was such a goofball,” Debra Seward said with a laugh. “When I see butterflies it makes me think about her because when she passed, I was surrounded by butterflies and I thought, ‘She is still with us.”
In honor of Grace Seward being a phenomenal student athlete, her mother started the Grace Seward Foundation.
“This foundation has a mission of raising awareness about the dangers of gun violence,” Debra Seward said. “You don’t have to solve altercations with violence.”
The foundation raised thousands of dollars to fund scholarships that go toward student athletes and students who are college-bound.
“I loved Grace,” Debra Seward said. “To be able to put my arms around her again, I would give anything to do that.”
Still today, Grace Seward’s case remains cold. Crimestoppers will reward people that have any information that could lead to an arrest.
To submit information, people are urged to contact (210) 224-7867.
“My faith tells me she is resting with God and one day we will see each other again,” Debra Seward said. “If I could say something to the people who did this, I would tell them, ‘I forgive you.’ I forgive them because God forgave me.”
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