GRANDVIEW, Mo. — On November 12, police found 17-year-old Amauri Hughes dead in Grandview, Mo. 

Saturday, a candlelight service was held in remembrance of the 17-year-old. 

Family, friends, and classmates of Amauri Hughes gathered in the Grandview High School parking lot Saturday to celebrate Amauri’s life and the light she brought to her loved ones. 

“Amauri was such a sweet soul. She didn’t deserve any of what she got,” Zaria Triplett said, a friend of Hughes. “She’s always laughing and has the brightest prettiest smile.”

“She has a very bright spirit and could put a smile on anybody’s face,” Serita Jones said, another friend of Hughes. 

On November 12th, police found Hughes dead near a carport in Grandview with stab wounds, a gunshot wound, bruises, cuts and broken teeth. 

The man at the center of the death investigation, 19-year-old Tyheem Anderson, is charged with three felonies, including armed criminal action and kidnapping. 

Anderson made his first court appearance Thursday. 

Anderson and Hughes had been in a relationship for a few years. 

“One thing I want to say before I go; he may have taken her body, but he will never take my baby’s soul… ever,” Amauri’s mother, Jenele Hughes, said during the candlelight service. 

During the service, Jenele Hughes thanked her daughter’s friends for being there to support Amauri and asked that they keep her memory alive going forward. 

“The one thing that I ask that you do is keep Amauri’s spirit alive,” Jenele Hughes said. “I understand that people are going to go on with their lives, but please keep her spirit alive. Remember her when you go off to college, when you’re at church. Remember Amauri Hughes. How beautiful she was, and remember the sacrifice she made so other women and girls on the street don’t have to go through that abuse anymore.”

Family members hope that Amauri’s story raises awareness about abuse and the signs of abuse. 

“Amauri was a beautiful spirit, and it is unfortunate that her life has been taken so soon. Tragedies like this should never happen,” Delbert Hughes said, Amauri’s great uncle. “We encourage the Kansas City area and people all over the world just to step up, be better, do better, love one another, respect one another. If you see something wrong, reach out and talk to somebody because nobody should have to go through this.”