The family of Mary Mathis Davis of Lexington is finally getting closure and answers after she was murdered 36 years ago.Davis was last seen May 30, 1987, at a Lexington Lanier’s Ace Hardware store. She worked for a brief period before failing to return after her lunch break. The following day, police told her family the devastating news: Davis had been found dead, strangled. Mary's body has been found behind the then, Winn Dixie in Lexington. Top Stories Dismembered body of missing North Carolina man found in barrel in woods, deputies say One person found dead after Winston-Salem house fire Barricade victim told police that suspect said he was going to kill her Tractor-trailer carrying Jack Daniel's whiskey crashes on I-40Investigators at the time of the homicide collected evidence that was not yet able to help in this case.Lexington police announced Tuesday that technological advancement in DNA helped them identify the suspect in the 36-year-old murder investigation.The DNA evidence in this case was submitted to the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation in 2022.Russell Grant Wood was positively identified as the offender in Davis' death.Wood died in 2013. District Attorney Garry Frank reviewed all relevant evidence and issued an official letter stating that Wood would have been charged with first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping and first-degree rape if he were alive.Lexington chief of police, Robby Rummage, said that Wood and Mary were not strangers to each other and it's unclear what their relationship to each other was. Rummage said they do not know a motive saying, "that would be nothing but conjecture." Davis' family was notified of this new information on Feb. 3.Her family was in attendance at the news conference."We prayed that one day we would find the person who violent murdered our beloved Mary," Lori Martin, Davis' niece. "We now have some answers. Although that won't bring Mary back, it does give us a sense of closure."Traci Cleary, Davis' daughter, wrote this poem which was read at the news conference:To my dear angel in heaven, I just want you to knowHow much you're in my thoughts and how much I love you soThough you are in God's care and that's how it should beBut when I get to heaven, he will give you back to meMary would've turned 65 this upcoming Sunday. The family is having a celebration of life and memorial for her then. Click the video player above to watch the latest headlines from WXII 12 News.Get the latest news stories of interest by clicking hereNAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Watch NOWCAST TV | Local News | National | News We LoveTrending StoriesKeep up with the latest news and weather by downloading the WXII app here.