KISSIMMEE, Fla. – On Friday night, friends and family celebrated the life of 37-year-old Terrell Williams with a candlelit vigil.
Early Christmas morning, Williams was shot in the parking lot of Cafe Lungo on Vineland Road in Kissimmee.
Osceola County deputies said 26-year-old Gabriel Correa was the gunman. He was charged and arrested last week in Polk County. Deputies said Correa got into an argument with a staff member, left the lounge, then came back and started shooting.
Williams was in the parking lot next to his vehicle when he was caught in the crossfire.
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His fiancé, Kimberly Linden, told Williams she loved him Christmas Eve night before he left.
“He was just this kindhearted, loving, caring man and his smile just lit up a room,” Linden said.
Linden didn’t think for a second that would be the last time she would see him alive.
“A friend actually texted me and said, ‘Please tell me that it’s a lie’ and I said what do you mean? What’s a lie? And he didn’t respond so I called him and that’s when he told me he had been shot,” Linden said.
In that moment, Linden said it felt like her world came crashing down. Now, she feels some relief since the gunman is behind bars, but anger still lingers.
“I’ll never forget or forgive what he’s done,” Linden said. “He’s ruined so many lives and he deserves everything that he gets.”
Although in pain, Williams’ family wanted to celebrate his life. The group laughed, cried, hugged and even danced to music.
“You couldn’t tell whether you wanted to hug him or choke him sometimes, but he was the life of a party, and this is what he would want,” Linden said.
His mother, Mattia Smith Williams, said he was loved by many and truly talented.
“It’s not about again how my son passed away from here it’s about how he lived when he was here,” Smith said.
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