NATCHEZ — When Cynthia Graves lost her son to gun violence in 2011, it was the strength of a stranger that helped her navigate the unimaginable grief she was experiencing.

That stranger was a fellow mother, whose son had been killed in Jackson just a few months before Graves’ son Walter Washington was gunned down Aug. 27, 2011, at the Natchez Mall.

“She just pressed on,” Graves said. “I guess that’s all she could do was press on. She was going through it herself, but she had the courage to come see me, too.

“It was such a blessing, because no one really knows what you’re going through unless they’ve went through it too.”

It’s been nearly three years since her son’s murder, but Graves is still haunted by that night.

“I still remember that night, Aug. 27, and how God has brought me from then to now,” Graves said. “I thought I was going to lose my mind, I really did. It was enough to make you lose your mind.”

Graves said she feels the void her son’s death left in her life and still does not have closure. Graves saw her son’s killer, Lee Raymond Smith, face-to-face in a courtroom last month when Smith was sentenced to 20 years after pleading to manslaughter for shooting and killing Washington.

Latravis Clay was also sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in the murder.

“I thought that after they were prosecuted that I would get some closure,” she said. “But what is closure? I understand what it means. But I don’t know what it is. To me, you never get closure because my son is never coming back.”

It is the strength of the grieving mother who came to see her after Washington’s murder that reminds Graves she must be strong.

Graves is hoping to share her story and strength with fellow mothers and family members of victims of violence at the “Stop the Violence, Increase the Peace” walk and rally April 26.

The event, sponsored by the Natchez chapter of the National Action Network, will include a walk at 1 p.m. from the parking lot of Zion Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church on Martin Luther King Jr. Street to the Voters League, formerly the Brick House.

The event will also include remarks from local leaders and entertainment from vocalists and the Natchez High School drum line.

Family members of victims will also share their stories.

Walk organizer and NAN coordinator Jacqueline Marsaw, who lost her brother to gun violence, said she hopes the walk gets the attention of those who would rather use guns than diplomacy to solve their problems, especially young people.

“I’m hoping somebody there will listen,” she said. “Grabbing your gun is not the answer.”

The walk she said is to raise awareness and take a stand against the trouble local residents face in their neighborhoods.

“It’s stuff we see every day,” she said. “I talk to people every day who say they hear gunshots ringing out all over this city.”

The walk is open to anyone who wishes to attend and victims’ families are encouraged to walk with T-shirts and posters to honor their lost loves ones.

Anyone wishing to work with NAN can contact Marsaw at 601-443-3630.