(ASSOCIATED PRESS) — BATESVILLE, Miss. — About 400 mourners packed a chapel in Mississippi on Saturday to say goodbye to a 19-year-old woman who was burned alive, among them classmates who used permanent markers to write heartfelt messages on her white metal coffin.
“Fly high, Jessica,” said some, a reference to the former cheerleader’s aerial acrobatics, according to the Rev. Eric Greggs, one of three speakers at the 45-minute service.
Chambers graduated from South Panola High last year and worked in sales at a Batesville clothing and gift shop.
Alabama author Linda Oliver said Chambers had recently asked her to help write a book about her life.
