News 14 Carolina's Deborah Tuff has more with those who knew and loved the 20-year-old UNCC student.
CHAPEL HILL -- The body of 20-year-old University of North Carolina at Charlotte student Irina Yarmolenko was found lying beside her car near a remote area of the Catawba River in Mount Holly on May 5.
Police say she was suffocated, and while they continue their investigation, family and friends want to tell the world how she lived. They held a memorial service Saturday at Yarmolenko's alma mater, Chapel Hill High School.
Once inside the school’s auditorium, even those who didn't know Yarmolenko soon felt close enough to call her by her nickname, Ira. Pictures from her birth to her college career at UNC Charlotte dissolved in and out on a big screen and words from family and friends tickled mourners and brought tears to their eyes.
A slideshow played during the service gave mourners a look at Irina Yarmolenko's life.
The slideshow of Ira's life revealed her many talents. She played piano, acted in theater and a group of her friends read lines of her poetry, which highlighted peace and unity.
"Ira was universal in that everybody loved her,” Jennifer Long, one of Yarmolenko's best friends, said. “Nobody had anything against her."
That's why mourners say it’s hard to understand why anyone would want to hurt her. And as family and friends continue to cope with her death, they hope that whoever is responsible is brought to justice.
"I want that person to truly realize the true extent he has done to our family and our community,“ her brother, Pavel, said. “He should think about turning himself in."
UNC Charlotte has contributed $10,000 to Crime Stoppers to find the person or people responsible for Yarmolenko's death.