OUTER BANKS, N.C. — After the death of her daughter and grandson last year, Kelley Horton made the decision to turn her pain into healing.
In May of 2020, 39-year-old Ravann Horton and her 9-year-old son, Sebastian “Sebi” Lopez, died in a fire in their apartment in Kill Devil Hills.
Horton remembers the moment she got the call.
“I got a call. My phone rang around 4 o'clock in the morning from her neighbor. And she had called and asked if Ravann and Sebi were with us because they often spent the night here. We all hung out together. And I said, 'no.' And she said, 'Well you need to get here because the apartment's on fire,'” Horton said.
While dealing with the loss, Horton approached children's author and friend Brandi McMahan about creating a book to honor their memory.
“It was, in my opinion, epic, because she was able to capture both, and include Ravann and Sebastian and include their bond, which was unbreakable. You never saw one without the other,” Horton said.
McMahan says this book has special meaning.
“My other books teach, you know, children about colors, days of the week, seasons, this one teaches about something beyond that,” McMahan said.
In the book, "Sebi the Colt: A New Life", Sebi dies and becomes a Corolla wild horse and his mom becomes a raven. Beyond the words, the book will continue Ravann's legacy of giving.
“They were able to, I think, teach each other in life the things that matter about being kind and giving. And thats exactly what Ravann did,” Horton said.
Proceeds will be donated to local Outer Banks charities.
The book is now available on Amazon here. And you can find updates on the donations on their Facebook page.