Two young children lost their loving mother after a stray bullet hit her in the head.
The terribly tragic incident took place on Sunday night. At the time of the shooting, 23-year-old Melanie Yates from Zion, Illinois, was reading the bible to her seven-month-old daughter as she was putting her to sleep.
The police arrived at the scene at 2800 block of Enoch Avenue in Zion to see young Melanie bleeding from the head. She was rushed to the hospital but succumbed to her injuries on Monday.
According to Lake County Major Crime Task Force spokesman Christopher Covelli, Melanie was not the intended target.
Neighbors reported to have heard seven or eight gunshots at the time of the shooting.
Melanie’s brother, Stephan Calderon, wrote on social media, “Everybody who knew Lanie knows she loved Jesus Christ with every fiber of her being. There is no doubt whatsoever that she is in heaven at this very moment. But we on earth miss her very dearly.”
The entire family is devastated and heartbroken. They have a hard time accepting this beautiful young mother and wife is no longer by their side.
“You totally transformed the lives of my son-in-law and my granddaughters. They will never know their mother again. It’s heartbreaking because she wasn’t out and about, she was in her own home,” her mother Lam Calderon shared with Fox13 News.
The investigation is ongoing. So far, there is no information about the shooter, and there are no suspects. The police is asking anyone who has any information about the case to come forward.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family during times of grief. So far, $134,600 have been raised.
“We miss her passionate, powerful prayers. We miss her infectious laugh. We miss her beautiful singing voice lifting songs of worship. We miss her feisty, witty humor. We miss her dedication to being an amazing, godly mom and wife. We miss her. And we wish with every fiber of our being she was here, but we know she’s in a better place,” her brother wrote online.
Rest in peace, Melanie. Our hearts go out to her family.