Devastated by loss, friends and family of 76-year-old Charlene McAlister, who was killed in a hit-and-run Wednesday, focus on the love and light brought to their life just by knowing her.

McAlister was fatally struck while she was walking to work at the McCoy and Littlejohn Child Care Center, where she was an infant classroom supervisor.

Law enforcement officials believe the deadly hit-and-run involved two drivers, one of whom has come forward.

Not only did McAlister leave behind her husband, three children and three grandchildren, but she also left behind everyone who called her mom, whether they were blood relatives or not.

McAlister’s daughter, Serena, knew her mom was loved beyond words and since her passing, has received dozens of calls from people her mother touched. Many of Serena’s friends have children who grew up calling her mom.

“The second the news broke, nearly all of my friends’ children left school,” Serena said. “They couldn’t bear to get through the day. What do you mean grandma’s no longer here? What do you mean somebody took grandma from us?”

McAlister was healthy before her sudden death, constantly trying new things and finding time to be active with her grandchildren.

“Age was not something that stopped her,” Serena said. “She grasped life, she enjoyed life. She taught us to never be afraid, just go out there, enjoy things.”

While the loss itself is devastating, the family is facing other issues because McAlister was the sole income contributor for her daughter and grandson, both of whom lived with her.

“I have been dealing with a lot of ongoing medical things, so this is really leaving me and her grandson in a tight spot,” Serena said. “I mean, I don’t know where we’re going from here.”

A GoFundMe fundraiser was launched to aid Serena and her son, who is still in school. As of Monday, $1,135 has been raised so far, with more donations coming in.

Despite the tragic loss, Serena has countless memories of her mom to remember and hold close. Calling her a “cool mom,” Serena said she was the kind of person to wait in the cold for hours to get concert tickets or the first copy of the new Harry Potter book.

The pair talked every single day. When asked about her favorite memories of her mom, Serena had no shortage of answers but mentioned their weekend coffee chats several times.

“There are a million things that I still want to tell her, show her,” Serena said.

Those who worked with McAlister at the McCoy and Littlejohn Child Care Center echoed the same words as Serena. Staff members said she treated every child as if they were her own, just like she did with her children’s friends growing up.

“She was a mother to all and a great loss to our team,” director and owner Kimberly McCoy said. “She was a good person inside and out. It’s going to be very hard to have to replace her.”

On the day of her death, McCoy told The Gazette she knew something was wrong when she didn’t arrive for her 7 a.m. shift. After receiving a call from a parent who told her there was an accident, she immediately went down to the scene, terrified the crash involved McAlister.

When she arrived, she spotted someone on the ground with a hedgehog backpack and right away knew it was her.

“I don’t know anybody else who carries a hedgehog backpack, so I started screaming, ‘That’s her! That’s her! That’s her,’” McCoy said. “I walked back to the building, and I couldn’t even tell my employees what happened. I just couldn’t believe it.”

Cassie Junkin, an assistant at the child care center, told The Gazette it hasn’t been the same since McAlister died. Junkin worked with McAlister the entire time she was on staff, calling her an “amazing co-worker and a great friend.”

“I felt like she was a grandma figure in my life. She never disappointed you; she was always there for you,” Junkin said. “It’s been really hard every day coming in here without her.”

Gazette reporter Natasha Lynn contributed to this report.