3-Year-Old Shot and Killed by Her Father After Running Out to Greet Him.

On Saturday afternoon 3-year-old Cherish Jackson ran down her driveway to greet her father. Terrance Jackson, 22, was separated from Cherish's mother, Casey Scott, and had promised to take his little girl to the store.

Neighbors say that they heard Cherish joyfully shouting "Daddy! Daddy!" as she ran out to meet him. Terrance Jackson mumbled a few words to his daughter then shot her in the head. In broad daylight, in front of several neighbors.

Seconds later, Jackson turned the gun on himself as well.

Cherish was described by neighbors as being a happy little girl who played with several of their children. She had a big personality and a huge vocabulary! “She was beautiful,” Casey Scott, Cherish's mother, said. “She was smart. If you looked at her you’d think she was two but when she opened her mouth you’d think she was 20 you know.”

The small community of Escambia County, Florida hosted a vigil for Cherish on Monday with hundreds of people gathering to mourn the loss of a child that some of them never knew.

At this time, there's no motive for why Jackson shot his daughter, or himself, but the authorities are investigating.

Cherish's family is still planning her funeral.

“I’ve been holding my head high,” Scott said. “I know that my baby wouldn’t want us out here crying. Wouldn’t want us out here struggling. Wouldn’t want us out here breaking down. As you can see, she was a fighter.”

Keep this family in your prayers.