The family of a Brevard County woman is celebrating her life and trying to raise awareness about domestic violence.

Griselle “Gigi” Martinez, 22, was beaten to death a year ago. Her boyfriend, Josiah Hadley, has been charged with her murder. He remains in jail awaiting trial.

On Sunday, the victim’s family held a memorial event at Palm Bay Regional Park.

“She always tried to bring him around, but I never got that good vibe,” said Ingrid Llaverias, her mother.

Martinez’s mother said she never saw the signs that her daughter was being abused.

“We had no idea,” Llaverias said. “Towards the end, we didn’t see her very much of her and we found it weird being that we’re such a tight family.”

On Oct. 4, 2014, Griselle’s roommate heard loud noises coming from her bedroom, and when he came inside, he saw her boyfriend, Josiah Hadley, punching her repeatedly in the head. He was able to pull him off of her, but the damage was already done.

Doctors pronounced Griselle brain dead and she was taken off of life support days later. Her boyfriend later admitted to police that he beat her.

“You don’t hit a woman,” Llaverias said. “You don’t hit anyone.”

Now one year later, her family is still coping with this tragic loss.

“We used to take pictures all the time,” said Jaylinn Maldonado, Martinez’s sister. “And now I have her phone, so I just see her pictures with me and her and it’s really hard. It means more to me than just a phone. It makes me happy because if I just ever miss her I can just go to the top.”

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Domestic violence resources