LARGO, Fla. — Her death was unconscionable and unexpected, and now, her family struggles to process the fact that she's no longer here.
Sabrina Peckham, 41, was identified by officials Saturday, a day after her body was found in an alligator's jaws in Largo.
"It was ultimately very tragic the way that she passed. It's not common," said Breauna Dorris, Peckham's daughter. The 23-year-old hoped for the best on Friday after hearing a body was found in an alligator's mouth in an area she knows well.
"At the time that it happened, there were just like thoughts that were in my head. I was just praying, like, 'Please don't be her! Please don't be her,'" Dorris said.
What concerned her was the fact that her mother was homeless. The last time Dorris saw her was the morning before tragedy struck.
"She was living off to the left here, in like a little camp set up," she said while standing at her memorial Monday evening. "Reliving it multiple times, it's hard."
Pinellas County deputies and Florida Fish and Wildlife pulled a nearly 14-foot gator out of the small creek on 134th Avenue North in Largo. Peckham was identified as the body found in its jaws a day later.
"Standing here even thinking about it is hard. You know, usually people, they pass peacefully. If it's not peacefully, it's usually quick and nobody knows what fully happened here. She's the only person that would know that and I'll never have the closure to know. It's hard to think about her in that manner," Dorris said.
Dorris says despite her mother's past issues with drugs that led to her being homeless, she doesn't believe drugs played a role in her death.
"I don't think when the toxicology comes back that it's going to show that she died from like an overdose or anything like that. I do think that the gator ultimately was what killed her," Dorris said.
Dorris says despite her mistakes, her mother was still human. She says she was a good person who was kind-hearted and loving and she didn't deserve to die that way. That's why she wants to see change happen by the creek.
"City officials or somebody just please put something here. It needs it. It needs a full fence. It needs a sign," Dorris said.
For now, balloons and flowers are not just a reminder of what happened, but of Sabrina's spirit.
"We really just put this up to show that we cared for her and that people did love her. I want her to have a name and I don't want her just to be referred to as the homeless lady that got eaten by an alligator because that's not fair," Dorris said.
Right now, the family is fundraising for Sabrina's funeral and burial. Dorris says right now there are no funeral or death arrangements set up, but they will be using the funds raised for crematory expenses and laying her to rest in their family plot. If you'd like to donate and support the family, you can here.