Kerry Puckerin-Tear has a memory box in her bedroom containing three yellow paper hearts covered in her neat handwriting.On each heart, the nine-year-old has carefully listed all the things she must do to help her deal with the murder of her father a year ago today.It’s a simple list read a book, talk about him, catch a ball, play with the dog but it has proved crucial in helping the bright, vivacious girl cope with more than any child her age should ever have to.Perry Puckerin, 34, was shot dead at Hamilton Parish Workman’s Club on January 3, 2010, leaving behind Kerry and son Lejuan, now 17, as well as parents Perry Sr and Maxzine and brothers Michael and Lamont.His killers remain at large and Police yesterday renewed their appeal for information to help solve the crime.Kerry has heard rumours about who carried out the 9.30pm killing but her mother, Kyla Tear, 28, reminds her gently that rumours are not fact.Still, at Victor Scott Primary School in Pembroke, where Kerry is “excelling” in year four, it’s not unusual for playground chatter to focus on gun violence.One of Kerry’s classmates was a boy whose father, Kimwandae Walker, was gunned down on the school playing field on Good Friday last year.And the youngster states matter-of-factly that the husband of one of her teachers “got shot” in May.Ms Tear said when she told Kerry her father had died, the youngster immediately knew how. “I didn’t even get to tell her about the gun shot,” she said.“She said ‘Momma, he got shot’. I didn’t even have to finish it. She had already heard before that something had happened to Wheels [May 2009 murder victim Kenwandee Robinson].”Kerry told The Royal Gazette she felt mad when she found out her father the first of 2010’s seven murder victims had been killed.Now she feels mostly sad and shares her painful thoughts with her school counsellor who helped her create the yellow hearts her mother, nana and auntie.Kerry still talks in the present tense about her beloved “daddy” and his fondness for football, Gombey dancing and children.She delves further into her memory box and proudly shows off photographs of the two of them together, as well as two colourfully-decorated lollipop stick figures representing them both and a book she wrote and illustrated called ‘Kerry Helps Kids’.Ms Tear said the loss of Kerry’s father had “matured her very much. She’s grown up”.“She has her moments but she’s doing alright. She’s actually excelling, believe it or not. It’s hard but I won’t say I can’t handle it.“You get stronger as time progresses but it’s not just a walk in the park. You have up times and you have down times.”She was no longer in a relationship with Mr Puckerin, of Footbridge Lane, Pembroke, when he died but he had spoken to her about the violence engulfing his St. Monica’s Road neighbourhood.“I talked to him about all the stuff that was going on. I said ‘Perry, come spend some time with Kerry. That’s the reason why you should spend some time with her’. He came and spent that whole day with her [before he was shot]. I’m so glad that he did come and take her that day.”At the time, she said, the hardest part was “just to know that her and Perry were so tight”. Now, the biggest difficulty is responding to Kerry’s questions.“She wants answers, so it’s like ‘who did it?’. I can’t answer those questions. She can question but momma don’t know.”Three people were arrested in connection with Mr Puckerin’s murder last January and later released without charge.A police spokesman said yesterday that the investigation continued.“We remain interested in speaking to anyone who may have any information as it relates to the incident or who saw anyone specifically in the area of Hamilton Parish Workman’s Club around the time,” he said.l Anyone with information should call the Serious Crime Unit on 295 0011 or the independent Crime Stoppers hotline on 800 8477.