‘Took a piece of me’: Family remembers 15-year-old killed in Augusta

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – One of Augusta’s latest victims of gun violence was 15-year-old Devayn Grissam.  

Authorities say he was shot around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday on Helsinki Drive. He was taken to the hospital where he later died. 

On Friday, Devayn’s family continues to search for a way forward as information surrounding potential suspects is limited. 

“He took a piece of me. Yes, definitely. He took a piece of me, and I don’t know if I heal from it, you know,” said Telisha Grissam, Devayn’s aunt.

We sat down with Devayn’s family to see how they’re honoring his life.  

Moving forward without Devayn is going to be rough for his family. 

They are already thinking about how different the holiday season will be without him. 

But Devayn’s family wanted to speak to us to share his story and their message to the community to put the guns down.

It’s a life cut too soon. 

“We’re never going to get that. They’ll be able to see their kids grow, but we’ll never be able to see him grow and progress and what could have been so he will forever be 15 years old,” said Telisha.

Devayn loved his family, and his family loved him.  

“If I knew, this would be the last time with me seeing him, I would have hugged him a little tighter. I would have talked to him a little longer. You never know when it’s the last time that you’re going to lose someone you never know. And to lose a child to gun violence is hard,” said Telisha.

The day Devayn died, his aunt says, “I remember almost falling to the floor at Walmart in North Augusta when I found out that he was killed.” 

His family wants you to hear their heart-breaking plea. 

“The graveyards are filling up with our children. They’re not having a chance at life, not even experience life to see what life is about. At 15 years old, you don’t know what life is about,” said Telisha.

Devayn’s family doesn’t want another family to feel their unbearable pain. 

“Right now, what they have done is put this family up on a lot of stress, because now we got to worry about how we are going to bury this 15-year-old kid because this is so unexpected,” said Telisha.

Together, his family chooses to remember Devayn for the life he lived. 

“He loved to play basketball. He loved to do flips like gymnastics. He was flipping all the time. He was a practical joker. Every time you see him, he always jokes about having fun,” said his aunt.

In their eyes, he is 15 forever.  

“I speak on behalf of his father, his mother, his grandmother. I speak on behalf of my family. This is some pain that we’re going to endure for the rest of our lives,” said Telisha.

So far, no arrests have been made in Devayn’s death.

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