RACINE -- A community is in mourning after a suspected murder-suicide left two people dead in Racine Friday morning at a home on 19th Street.
Police say they were an estranged couple, a 30-year-old woman and 34-year-old man, and that two kids were inside the home when shots were fired.
Family and friends identify the woman as Angelica Rios, known as Angie.
Saturday night they rallied together at a vigil for her family, including her kids that are now without their parents.
Rios was more than a best friend to Brillo Nieves, she was a sister.
“I believe that we lost an angel,” Nieves said. “She held me when I was weak and I held her the best I could. We were there for each other but she was there for a lot more people.”
She touched countless lives. Many of them paid their respects at a vigil outside the home where police say the suspected murder-suicide took place.
Rios worked as a secretary in the Racine Unified School District, an a certified nursing assistant at Ascension, all while raising her two kids in a home she bought on her own.
Pastor Prentiss Robbins watched her grow, when he met her working at a local childcare center.
“She was one of the people that really pulled herself up by her own bootstraps,” Robbins said.
Along the way she was always doing for others, even bringing blankets to the homeless in the middle of a snowstorm.
“Didn’t matter if it was her last dime, she would give it up for somebody else,” Nieves said.
They’re trying to cope.
“Everybody is devastated,” Rios’ uncle, Roberto said.
In the meantime, family is calling this a domestic violence incident, and they want to warn others to be vigilant.
“We need to look out after each other. If you see something not right then you need to make a call,” Nieves said.
Police have yet to release more details about what happened.
Racine Unified School District shared the following statement about Rios: “The Racine Unified School District is heartbroken for the family of Angie Rios. She will be deeply missed by her school colleagues and students.”
Ascension All Saints Hospital also released a statement about their colleague: “The Ascension All Saints family is deeply saddened by losing one of our own. Angie Rios was one of our certified nursing assistants who was admired for going above and beyond for her patients, for her beautiful heart and her devotion to her patients and her family. This heartbreaking loss is felt not only by the Ascension community but by the patients who benefited from her compassionate care. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Angie’s family at this difficult time.”
