MURRELLS INLET, SC (WBTW) – The Murrells Inlet community is hosting a “last cast” to remember a woman murdered Friday.
Boats will ride down the Marshwalk and will come together for a prayer service. After circling down the Marshwalk and by Veterans Pier, the boats will gather together where a pastor will say a prayer and people will drop flowers and a “last cast” in remembrance of 36-year-old Jessica Lynn Hill.
“Her beauty was definitely something that struck people right away, and when she started talking about fishing or how to catch more fish, it just, it was a double threat,” smiles Jason Burton with Murrells Inlet Fishing Charters as he speaks about Hill.
Ask anyone who knew her, and they’ll tell you Hill could outdo anyone when it came to baiting and rigging.
“Our hashtag would always be ‘silly boys, fishing is for girls,’” laughs Hill’s friend Erica Williams.
Hill managed Perry’s Bait and Tackle in Murrells Inlet, and left an impression on everyone who met her.
“Every time I would walk into Perry’s, it would be her smile I’d see, and it really would just light up a room,” recalls Williams.
Michael Bernhardt visits Murrells Inlet, and says even though he didn’t know Hill outside of the bait and tackle shop, her kindness made quite the impression.
“She was just so kind, so helpful,” says Bernhardt. “I didn’t have enough money until the bank opened on Monday, and she just said, you know, ‘Go ahead. I’ll see you Monday.’”
The entire Murrells Inlet fishing community and beyond is now mourning the loss of what one friend called “the face of Murrells Inlet.”
“I just broke down, because I didn’t want it to be true,” says Williams of hearing of her friend’s death.
Police say Hill was killed by 35-year-old Eric Justin Perry, who has been charged with murder and arson. Despite the unexpected tragedy, Murrells Inlet residents say Hill will be known for much more than what happened in her last days.
“I think her memory will last much longer than the memory of the tragedy that just happened,” predicts Burton.
Perry’s Bait and Tackle is expected to reopen Friday. The ceremony to remember Hill begins at 6 p.m. Monday.
