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Mourners say Repp always coaxed a smile Hundreds attend a memorial for the 29-year-old mother who was found shot to death last Saturday By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune A black and white photograph shows a little girl wearing Mickey Mouse ears - whiskers penned around her pouting lips. The same dark-eyed child later sports sequined dance costumes and floppy feathers atop her black ringlets. Grown up, the curly-haired woman laughs as her two sons pile on top of her in a studio portrait. Photos chronicling the life of Kerry Michele Johnson Repp greeted hundreds of mourners Saturday as they gathered at the First Church of the Nazarene to remember the 29-year-old mother who was found shot to death a week ago in her Central Point home. Police initially thought Repp had killed herself but ruled the death a homicide Wednesday. Her husband, Gary Marvin Repp Jr., is the only "person of interest" police have named in the case. With their words, friends and family painted a portrait of a woman who could always bring a smile to their faces. A woman who smiled herself, even when she was hurting. A woman who was the perfect mother to her 6- and 4-year-old sons. She was born Dec. 7, 1972, in Medford. She grew up attending dance classes and driving in drag races with her father and brother, said pastor Michael Milhollin, who officiated at the service. She graduated from North Medford High School in 1991 and worked at J.C. Penney for seven years. In 1994, she married Shane Christopher Deskins of Central Point. Milhollin did not mention Kerry Repp's 1999 marriage to Gary Repp, who was not present at Saturday's service. Friends and family spoke of the last time they saw Kerry Repp - many on May 3, the day before her body was found in her Hazel Street home. On that Friday, Kerry Repp cheered for her 6-year-old son and cried because she was so proud that he hit a baseball for the first time in a Little League game. She visited with friends who brought baby gifts to her home. She was three months pregnant when she died. "Now that the family has been torn apart by a senseless act of violence, I don't know if we can ever recover, but we will try for the sake of six precious grandchildren," Kerry Repp's father, Ron Johnson, wrote in a letter Milhollin read at the service. Kerry Repp had re-established a relationship with her family in the past year, Milhollin said. In his letter, Johnson wrote that Easter Sunday this year was one of the happiest days of his life because "after a long and terrible time, (his) family was together again." Friends told police and reporters that the Repps had a rocky relationship. Kerry Repp had filed for divorce last month, but she asked that the papers not be served, police said. The couple reportedly were living together trying to reconcile. Wednesday's autopsy showed that Kerry Repp was shot more than once with a handgun that was found near her body. Gary Repp, a captain in the Oregon National Guard and a state trooper in training, was at a T-ball game with the two children when her body was found. "I didn't have her back like a brother should," said Kerry Repp's 32-year-old brother, Mike Johnson, in a letter Milhollin read to those assembled. "So brothers hug your sisters," Mike Johnson wrote. "And remember that saying 'I love you' is hard, but it's the hardest thing in the world when you can never say it again." Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.