Kim’s grandmother, aunt and aunt-in-law, recently discussed Porter’s younger life and how her passing has affected the rest of the family.

Porter, who passed away last Thursday (November 15) at the age of 47, died after a reported cardiac event. Columbus, Georgia’s WTVM spoke with the three family members who shared their thoughts.

“She went to modeling school here in Columbus and they would travel to Hilton Head and she won quite a few contests there. She won the ‘Model of the South’ there,” her aunt Carolyn Ross said in describing Porter’s early success.

When it comes to her passing, Lila Mae Star, Porter’s grandmother, said she spoke to her granddaughter just a day before she passed away. “She told me she felt better and that the doctor had been to her house and he gave her an antibiotic,” she remembered.

As a collective, Kim Porter’s family describes her as a “gracious person” who never met a stranger. She graduated from Columbus High School in 1988 and subsequently moved to New York City.

Porter leaves behind four children including 11 year-old-twin girls, 27-year-old Quincy Brown, and 21-year-old Christian Combs.

Funeral arrangements are still in the works.