Two Chicago mothers were killed in a drive-by shooting last week as they stood volunteering on a street corner with a charitable organization that aims to create a safe space against “senseless killings.”
Chantel Grant, 26, and Andrea Stoudemire, 36, were shot dead in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood while volunteering with Mothers/Men Against Senseless Killings (MASK), the organization said in a post on Facebook.
The mothers were gunned down at around 10 p.m. on July 26 by individuals of a blue SUV as they stood on a street corner often occupied by MASK volunteers, according to the Chicago Police Department.
They both suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the chest and were rushed to a nearby hospital where they were pronounced dead.
Another man, 58, fell to the ground during the attack and suffered minor injuries.
“For mothers to be killed in a place where mothers go to seek safety and sisterhood, I take that as a personal threat,” she said July 28.
“Because when you come for one of us, you better believe they came for all of us ... That could’ve been any of us.”
“From what we know right now, there is nothing, no evidence to suggest they were targeted because of their affiliation with that group,” he said.
“As a matter of fact, one of them was shot from like a half a block away.”
He added that the Chicago police believed one of the injured men was the intended target.
“We think the targeted individual was the young man that was out there and was struck by gunfire,” he added.
MASK was founded four years ago and aims to “interrupt violence and crime, and teach children to grow up as friends rather than enemies,” according to its website.
Since 2015, the group has occupied the corner where the two mothers were killed, often hosting barbecues in the warmer months, in an effort to end gun violence and building a safe space in their community.
“It is terrifying. It is heartbreaking. I haven’t slept because I am trying to figure out how we can stop this,” MASK founder Manasseh told the Chicago-Sun Times.
“Who’s next? I just keep thinking, Who’s next?”
According to reports, Grant had four children, and her youngest had just turned 1. It is not yet certain how many children Stoudemire had. However, various outlets have reported she either had two or four children.
“By now, I should have seen Chantell at least three or four times at this point of the day. I will never see her again. I will never see Andrea again.”
Manasseh added that Stoudemire was always there for other women within the community.
In a Facebook post, MASK said members of the organization wish for Grant and Stoudemire to be remembered as “valued, loved moms and community members, not activists in an anti-violence movement.”
The murders are currently under investigation, and anyone with information regarding the incident is urged to contact the Chicago Police Department.
