Forever 7 initiative sparks joy for children after tragic death of South Bend girl, 7
SOUTH BEND — In a video recording from Christmas morning in 2019, Chrisyah Stephens, dressed in pink pajamas, squealed with glee while opening one of her presents.
As she unwrapped the large box, it occurred to her that the gift inside was the Barbie Dream House she had been eyeing at Walmart just a week earlier.
“It’s the one I was looking at and you said someone took it. Santa took it and gave it to me,” Chrisyah exclaimed giddily in the video.
Eight months later, she was fatally shot in the head on Aug. 27, 2020 while at a cousin’s birthday party in the front lawn of a house at the intersection of High and Donald Streets near the Studebaker Golf course.
Now, 2 ½ years after Chrisyah's death, the video of her opening the doll house played on Tuesday for a group of 24 young girls and their families at the Excel Center as part of the Forever 7 charity, founded by Chrisyah’s mother, Shanette Smiley.
Chrisyah was 7 years old when she died, hence the name Forever 7.
The program sets out to give Chrisyah’s cherished present — a Barbie Dream House — to a new group of girls from minority communities each year on Dec. 13 as a way to spread joy in Chrisyah’s name on her birthday.
“I don’t want to remember that tragedy, of course it’s always going to be with me. Instead, I want to turn it into a positive outcome,” Smiley said.
The atmosphere was certainly positive Tuesday as the girls, who were selected by representatives from elementary schools in the South Bend school system watched the video of Chrisyah before opening their own doll houses.
Girls sat patiently with family members. Many dressed up for the occasion, eating cupcakes and staring at the wrapped gifts that were sitting underneath a large photo of a smiling Chrisyah Stephens.
Before the event began, one woman came up to Shanette smiley and hugged her.
"It is so beautiful that you are thinking of all the other girls," the woman said to Smiley.
Smiley first got the idea to start Forever 7 last year when the calendar turned to December and she found herself still grieving over her daughter.
“I just thought on the 13th, instead of me being down and out, little girls should have a barbie dream house. I have a video of my daughter opening her gifts and I felt like that should be a need for other little girls,” she said.
In the span of just two weeks, Smiley put together the first Forever 7 initiative and gave away 10 Barbie Dream Houses with the help of local politician Desmont Upchurch’s Upchurch Family Foundation. This year, that number grew to 24 and Smiley hopes she can keep making Christmas time brighter for underprivileged girls for years to come.
The girls also got a single Barbie doll to go with the house.
Remembering Chrisyah
In the days after Chrisyah's death, various members of the community — including school, church and city leaders — and Chrisyah’s family organized events calling on the South Bend community to come forward if they had information about the incident and raising awareness over gun violence.
Case unravels:How a South Bend teen was cleared in the shooting death of 7-year-old girl
Witnesses and officials said the gunman was trying to shoot someone else at the party, and Chrisyah was caught in the crossfire.
Prosecutors eventually charged an 18-year-old man with her murder. But holes in the case led to his acquittal after a jury after a trial in Aug. 2021.
“No mother should walk around and not get justice for their child — their 7-year-old child at that,” said Smiley, who still lives in South Bend and works as a clinical assistant.
In the time that’s passed since her daughters’ death, Smiley believes she’s been able to process her grief more constructively, though the pain is something she’ll always carry with her.
“Some days are harder than others. She’s always on my brain, always on my mind. I will never forget my child,” Smiley said, as she reached for a photograph of Chrisyah hanging from a locket around her neck.
“That’s why I wanted to do this for her birthday. Instead of me being down and out, I wanted to be uplifted, upbeat about it. Of course, it was hard. It still is hard. I’m just trying.”
Email Marek Mazurek at mmazurek@sbtinfo.com. Follow him on Twitter: @marek_mazurek
Email Tribune staff writer Greg Swiercz at gswiercz@sbtinfo.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Mother of Chrisyah Stephens brings joy through Forever 7 charity
