September 25 marked the National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims. Events were held all across the country, including here in East Tennessee.
Dozens of people attended a ceremony held in downtown Knoxville.
"You could search forever and never find the words to tell you how we feel in our heart," said Joan Berry who lost her daughter, Johnia, in 2004 after being murdered by a thief. "I'd have rather had her for 21 years than none at all."
There's no way to describe what Berry has been through. She says she's not a public speaker, just a mother with a broken heart.
"There are no words, it's an everyday struggle," she said.
One day a year she brings families together going through the same pain. This was the fourth year they gathered outside the City County Building to remember husbands, wives, friends and children.
"It's not a pleasant time for us, but we don't want them to be forgotten," said Berry, "Every face here has a different story, it's indescribable."
"We're all in the same boat and have all been in a lot of tragedy," said Mary Newsom, mother of Chris Newsom, who was brutally murdered in 2007 along with Channon Christian.
Together the families see each other as support and giant family giving each other hope.
"It's about coming together unified as one," said Zenobia Dobson. She lost her son Zaevion Dobson, a Fulton High School student, in 2015 after he was shot while shielding three friends from gunfire.
They're using their voices to bring awareness to their loved one's stories, fight for justice and to let each other know they're not alone.
"I hoped all the time that we would be able to find an end to what we were fighting for. It took a long time, it took 12.5 years but we were never about to give up," said Newsom. "Don't ever give up. Always have hope."
Many of these families work everyday to bring awareness to their loved one's story. A new book called 'Moms of the Missing: Living the Nightmare' is being released next month and features Johnia Berry's story along with other nationwide cases.