YouTube helped Atlantic City mom pick up the pieces after son's killing

(BreakingTV: Each week, BreakingAC will highlight a different local YouTuber and find out the story behind their channel.) BEAUTY AND CORNROWS Subscribers: 1,034 Most viewed: Real Techniques Bold Metal Brush Collection Triangle Foundation Brush - 5,682

YouTube was Leoniece Roe-Nelson’s escape. The Atlantic City woman lost her 20-year-old son, Richard Roe, in a 2011 shooting. Roe-Nelson's 12-year-old son, Brenen, sometimes joins his mom. “I needed to get back to life,” she says. “I needed to do something besides work to take my mind off the situation.” A friend suggested watching videos on YouTube. She found people going through what she was. “Every video I watched, they all in a round-about way said the same thing,” Roe-Nelson said. “Get back to what you loved. But never forget and try to forgive the person so the healing can begin.” She started out with a couponing channel. But when she tried to change the handle a few years ago, she accidentally deleted it and had to start over. In 2015, Beauty and Cornrows was born. It combined her love of beauty and make up with her signature cornrows. “I’m trying to move on with getting myself back and maintain, so this has helped a great deal,” Roe-Nelson said. She’s still working on the forgiving part. Now, she had more than 1,000 subscribers. Beyond makeup tutorials, she has some fun with other things as well, including testing offerings from the dollar store. Her 12-year-old son, Brenen, has made a few guest appearances. And she’s trying to get her daughter to join in as well. She said the most surprising thing has been “the support of my followers, and where they come from all over the world,” she said. “I’m just amazed and grateful.” https://youtu.be/_26lr3U7kfo