ROCK ISLAND, Illinois — Tuesday's rain seemed fitting as a family looks back on one of its darkest days. Four years ago, De'mar Bester was shot to death in an alley off 11th Street - it's a day his mother cannot forget.
"I didn't get a chance to see my son 'cause they put him in a body bag and locked him up with keys so they could figure out what type of evidence they needed," Othea Stevenson, De'Mar's mother, told News 8's Chris Minor back in 2016.
Stevenson says she drove from her southern Illinois home that day and was unable to see her son who died at a nearby hospital.
Since that time she's helped organize vigils and has taken a stand to help families of gun violence.
Rock Island police are still investigating Bester's death, but his family has a new reminder of his legacy.
Tuesday would've been De'mar's 28th birthday. He was loved by his friends, family, and his three daughters. He was a man they all respected and the reason they all came together on Tuesday afternoon.
"And now, now just like Martin Luther King has a street sign, just like Rosa Parks has a street sign, my song get a street sign in his honor in his name," says Stevenson.
Glenhurst Court is covered in burdens for De'mar's family, but his legacy can live on with two new signs with the honorary name "De'Mar's Way".
"Ever since this happened I haven't been able to even grieve," says Stevenson. "I've been up and running to make sure my son builds a legacy."