There were tears, prayers, hugs and a general sense of outrage on 13th Street in Cincinnati's Pendleton neighborhood Tuesday.
They were prompted by the shooting deaths of a young mother, her nine-month-old son and a three-year-old girl she was babysitting.
The victims were Noelle Washington, who was packing to move to Nashville, her nine-month-old son Anthony Jones, and the three-year old girl she was babysitting, Sharailyn Wright.
Wright was the daughter of her best friend, Crystal Lewis, of Newport.
"Noelle has never done anything to anybody," said Alice Washington, of her granddaughter. "She was a sweet as she could be. She always wanted a son. She had one. We call him, 'Doodles.'"
The Reverend Damon Lynch, III, of the New Prospect Baptist Church, organized an impromptu and emotional prayer circle in front of the building where the shootings occurred.
He called the killings a tragedy – especially the children – and said the family is showing its faith in a time of adversity.
"God gets the glory for all things," Alice Washington said. "Yesterday was her last day on this Earth, but God has her now. So, we're good with that. We just wish she was still here."
That strength is going to be challenged, particularly because two of the victims were children.
"It's just demonic to kill a baby who hasn't even taken his first steps," she added. "He pulled up to my couch. He was learning to walk."
A memorial to the trio had grown by Tuesday afternoon to include teddy bears, balloons, cards, candles and other tributes.
Pictures of the Sharailyn Wright were taped to the brickwork above the items left by family members and residents of the Pendleton neighborhood.
Her cousin, Jeremy Johnson, said she loved to play.
"She was always playing – playing with the kids," he said. "It's just sad that a three-year-old has to go through something she doesn't have nothing to do with or anything that happened inside this house."
The infant's name was picked by her grandmother, Sharon Wright. It's a blending of her name, the girl's father and her maternal grandmother.
"That's my mama and my baby," Wright said, while gazing at the memorial. "That was my everything. My whole world. She will be missed. I miss you Mama and I'll see you in heaven."
