Michael Copeland

There's a lot of conflicting emotions. Of course, the natural one to move toward is anger and rage toward him. But this is someone we cared about.

he's not at an age where they really understand fully consequences.

When you're in a dark place, sometimes it's difficult to see anything until you realize that there is still a light there and it actually looks brighter because you're in a dark place. But the reality is that that light has always been there.

I'm a religious person, so I'm going to say that that light comes from God, but it is seen through the community, through the relationships and the people that we are surrounded by.

Anger is okay. It's a natural emotion. We need to be angry, and I am very angry. I don't show it, but I am angry at a number of people.

I'm angry at Savannah. Why did she go out that night? I've never, she's never gone out as far as I know. You know, I mean, I could look at her life 360 every single day and I could see she didn't sneak out. She never went out. We never had to worry about that. She was, she was generally speaking, terrified to go out.

Going out at 12 o'clock at night, not the best thing in the world, generally speaking. So she knew these things, and so it was an absolute shock to us that she would have gone out. So, yeah, I'm mad at her. I'm angry at this kid who did that. It was a betrayal of trust. I'm angry at this kid's family that I have opinions about now.

We recognize that that road that I just went down talking about my anger can so easily turn into hatred and rage.

It's going to be filled with compassion. That's the only way I know how to defeat evil.

The idea of your child being found in the dirt and it's still just being in the woods and in the dirt is not the kind of thing I want to come sit down at when I come to this area.

She liked to sit alone. She's kind of introverted like I am, so she was comfortable sitting by herself and just being in her own world.

I don't want it to be just a place to remember my child. I want it to be a little bit more meaningful for anyone, even if it's people who have lost somebody or people who just want to come and be silent for a little while.

Thank you.

Thank you.

But yeah, she just loved being out there with everyone and doing the things that cheerleaders do.

This big head on a stick, her face, and we would hold it up and yell at her. And I mean, everyone in the stands would hear us and see it and laugh.

Her Life360, which is an app that you can get, made it look like she was walking there.

It's a surreal feeling that, you know, for a moment you just, you don't feel like it's real. And you just expect to wake up from it.