The lush landscape of Washington Park will soon include a memorial to Lauren Giddings, the Mercer Law Graduate who was murdered last summer.
Her sister Kaitlyn Wheeler spoke to us from Maryland.
Of Lauren's love for Washington Park she said, "She had a dog that everybody has heard about, Butterbean, that she'd take for walks and she'd also go running there. It was just a place where she spent some of her free time."
Lauren's friends asked Macon City Council to place a memorial bench there in her honor and Tuesday night that was approved. It came as good news for the family who's lost a daughter and sister.
"We're really happy for ourselves obviously to get this bench, I feel like to help the community and all for people who are struggling through this," said Kaitlyn.
This is not just to honor the memory of Lauren Giddings. The city has passed an ordinance that says that anyone can request to set up a memorial marker in a city park to honor the memory of a lost loved one. It just must meet a few guidelines.
According to the ordinance, the city will only accept certain donated items like monuments, works of art, playground equipment and bench or tables.
It must commemorate a deceased person or a community association who contributed to the City, honor a place of historic significance or recognize someone's life who impacted his or her family or the community as a whole.
To have a memorial set up in a city park, you must apply at the Public Works Department.
The Parks Division will then assess the request and make sure it complies with policy.
The sponsors must agree to cover all costs of the project. That includes the design, plaques, installation and permits, if needed.
Friends plan to dedicate the bench for Lauren later this month.