BELLEVIEW, Fla. – When a Belleview woman awoke Saturday morning to find someone had spray-painted racial slurs in giant red letters on her vehicles and her property, members of her church immediately came to her aid to make sure she and her family weren't subjected to the hate-filled messages.
Nakea Darisaw said she and her two sons were asleep inside when someone vandalized her property and cut her phone line. She said she immediately fainted when she saw the damage around 8 a.m.
"I actually passed out, yes, because it was kind of like unbelievable because I had no enemies at all, I barely know anyone here except the people I got to church with, that's it," Darisaw said. "I don't know anybody else. I don't club, I don't go out, I don't do anything like that but go to work, church and take care of my kids."
Pictures from the home on East Highway 25 show the word "n***a" spray-painted on the hood of a 2011 gray Jaguar, on the side of a 2007 white Cadillac Escalade, on the garage door, on the front door and in front of the entrance to the home.
"Go" was spray-painted on a door of the home, and an elongated wave pattern was also painted onto the vehicles and home, according to the report.
Darisaw estimated that the vandal caused at least $3,000 in damages, deputies said. Aside from recovering from the property damage, Darisaw has also had to explain to her 16-year-old and 6-year-old boys that the family didn't deserve to be victimized like this.
"I tell my kids to love, I don't want them to have any hate in their hearts or to dislike someone because of their color, I want them to love everybody," Darisaw said. "It's hard to explain something like this to them. I just let them know that God loves them and no matter what happens, he's going to protect them."
Darisaw said the senseless hatred her family experienced was met with love when members of her church, BreadBreaker's Ministries, came to her home and pressure washed the vandalism from the walls.
Summer Antoine, whose husband is the pastor at BreadBreaker's Ministries, was one of the volunteers who flocked to Darisaw's side on Saturday.
"When we pulled up, my mouth dropped, my heart sank, my eyes were filled with tears. It was such a heavy experience. It was so terrible, and I'm just very sad for her," Antoine said.
Church members worked tirelessly to remove the red paint as best they could. They also plan to return this weekend to repaint the house and install flood lights.
"(We want to) bring justice to where justice needs to be brought, and you know, I think there is hate everywhere, I don't think it's any community. This just shows we have to pray even more," Antoine said.
Officials from the Marion County Sheriff's Office said they are investigating the crime as a felony criminal mischief case, which could possibly be enhanced under Florida's hate crime statute.