AUSTIN -- A Central Texas family is reeling after a loved one's murder this weekend.
Police found the body of 43-year-old Kelly Turner early Saturday morning. Those who knew her remembered her as a compassionate woman who was always there for her friends.
Barbara Shannon flips though pictures of her younger sister, cherishing the memories of the laughter and love they shared.
"That beautiful smile. When she walked into a room she just lit up the room with her smile," Shannon said. "She always saw something good in every person."
Investigators say 53-year-old Joseph Karr stabbed Turner to death inside a Southwest Austin home Saturday morning.
Karr is in the Travis County jail with bail set at $2 million.
Shannon said her sister and Karr flew in from California so he could meet her family. They all had dinner together on Wednesday.
"That was the last time we were together," Shannon said. "I didn't pick up on anything that disturbed me, I noticed he was quiet, he was very quiet."
For longtime friend Irek Banaczyk, Turner's death is devastating. Their 20-year friendship became a bond that couldn't be broken. Now, Banaczyk is heartbroken his longtime friend is gone.
"She met me at a time when I was really struggling with substance abuse problems myself, and she never gave up on me," he said.
Turner graduated from Westlake High School and attended the University of Texas at Austin. As a flight attendant for Southwest Airlines, she flew all over the country.
Banaczyk said he and Turner's many friends are doing their best to be there for her grief-stricken parents.
"I was taking Kelly's things she had left at her friends house, putting them into her mother's car, and she broke out in tears, saying, 'I can't believe I'm never going to see my daughter again,'" he said.
While Turner's loved ones struggle to cope with their loss, Shannon has a message for the man accused of taking her sister's life:
"As a Christian, I forgive him," she said. "And that he would find forgiveness for what he's done."
Friends and family of Kelly Turner are holding a memorial service for her on Nov. 14 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Spider House Ballroom.
