NEW ORLEANS — Thursday was the one-year celebration of life for a special little girl.
It was one year ago today when a little girl’s life changed forever. That afternoon, bullets were fired by someone in a drive-by shooting. Chlo’ee Williams, only seven years old, was hit. Officer Daniel McCreary came to her aid.
“She asked me if she was going to die when I first got there. I told her no that it wasn’t that bad. She was going to be OK,” Officer Daniel McCreary remembers saying in 2020.
He used his U.S. Army training and a first aid kit his wife gave him as a Christmas gift, to save her life. Through her rehab and struggles, Officer McCreary has stayed in touch. And today was no exception.
A year later Chlo’ee’s mother Leronisha Williams went all out for her daughter. She called today a celebration of life and threw a party fir for her princess, saying one year down, a lifetime to go.
“We are grateful for her being here so every year we're going to celebrate this day because we could be celebrating a death instead of her being here,” said Leronisha Williams, Chlo'ee's mother.
And right there as a guest was the officer who gave Leronisha her daughter back.
“I think it's important to show Chlo’ee that support. She means a lot to me. It was a crazy day, and it's a day that's going to stay with me forever,” said Daniel McCreary, a former NOPD officer.
Officer McCreary is now in law enforcement in his new home in Washington State. On his own dime, he flew across the country just to be back in New Orleans for the few hours he could get away from his family and job. It was all to be with Chlo’ee.
“Too bad I can’t be here long, but a couple of hours is better than no hours,” he said.
“When he told me he was coming, I was so happy. It just shows a lot of love and gratitude towards her being here, so I really was excited,” said Williams.
Other officers who were on the scene that day showed up too but did not want to be recognized. Chlo’ee knew they were there.
“I’m happy to be here (with) everyone who loves me, said Chlo’ee Williams.
And while this celebration of life goes on a year later, so does the investigation. Police have still not named a suspect in this case.
Two other people standing near Chlo'ee were hit by bullets in that still unsolved incident.