A woman and baby were found dead in a Charlotte hotel this summer. Who were they?
Whether it was money or food or the shirt off of her back, Shannon Solomon wouldn’t hesitate to give whatever she had to a person in need. Even when she didn’t have much.
“Shannon was unconditionally loving,” said Sunshine Gelato, Solomon’s cousin.
A native of Greenville, North Carolina, Solomon, 36, was found dead at a hotel room in north Charlotte with her 1-year-old son Hayden on June 6.
Solomon moved to the hotel to take part in Heal Charlotte, a nonprofit that provided housing assistance and programming at a former Baymont Inn. She continued living there until her death after Heal Charlotte’s lease at the hotel ended in April.
What happened to Shannon Solomon?
A medical examiner’s report said Solomon died of hypertensive cardiovascular disease with morbid obesity being a contributing condition to her death.
The report said Solomon was found on the floor of her room “in advanced state of decomposition.” Near her, lying on his left on top of a pillow, also in an advanced decomposition state, was Hayden, the report said. Neither had obvious signs of injury, the report said.
Gelato, who lives in New Jersey, said she learned after her cousin’s death that Solomon had a baby son, that the pair moved to the hotel after escaping domestic violence, and that Hayden was also found dead with Solomon.
Sudden loss hard to accept
It had been several years since Gelato spoke to or saw her cousin. And she never had the chance to meet Hayden.
Communication is difficult in her family, Gelato said. In recent years Solomon stopped responding by phone and social media.
So Gelato found the sudden loss difficult to accept.
Despite not having many recent memories, she remembers Solomon fondly from childhood.
“I’m missing my cousin,” Gelato said. She was “nurturing, loving and giving … Shannon was like a therapist for me.”
Creative, intelligent and a good cook
Solomon was a teenager when Gelato was born, she said. When they got to see each other, Solomon treated Gelato like her own daughter. Solomon was also very close with Gelato’s mother, often looking to her as a second parent.
Her cousin loved cats, which probably came from the 10 cats her mom had running around her childhood home, Gelato said. And Solomon was creative, intelligent, and a good cook.
“Shannon could sing, Shannon could rap, Shannon could freestyle,” Gelato said. “She could tell you a story that will have you cracking up.”
Solomon was also wise, Gelato said. When Gelato was 15, Solomon had her first son, who is now 11. The maternal instincts Solomon showed when Gelato was born kicked in after Solomon’s son’s birth, Gelato said.
“When I tell you she loved this little boy, she would spend all night holding this baby just to make sure he was comfortable and able to sleep.”
But Solomon didn’t have the best relationship with her mother, Gelato said. The cousins became confidants for each other, even though they didn’t live in the same state.
Solomon struggled to support her baby and her mother, Gelato said, and their relationship grew strained.
A fresh start
In 2018, Solomon left Greenville. Her mother was put in a care facility, Gelato said, and Solomon set off with her son to get their own home and start over. She moved around North Carolina and South Carolina, Gelato said.
Solomon began losing weight and tried to improve her financial situation, as well as her mental health. But she was forced to give up her son to foster care in 2019, Gelato said.
“But she knew once she got him back she’d be 10 times better,” Gelato said.
Solomon continued to try and improve her life, including trying to repair her relationship with her mother. While the two began to grow close again, Solomon’s mother passed away unexpectedly in 2019.
“She felt guilty,” Gelato said. “She felt like she could have done more and been there more.”
Losing contact after 2021
In 2021, after some financial difficulties, Solomon’s phone got cut off and the pair lost contact.
“I wasn’t able to find her after 2021,” Gelato said.
But after speaking with people who knew Solomon in recent years, Gelato learned Solomon never lost her maternal instincts.
She was still resilient and a good person, Gelato said.
“Energy can never die,” Gelato said. “She was powerful.”
This story was originally published October 22, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
