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Families Of Men Slain In Auburn Gresham Raising Money For Funerals

By Kelly Bauer | March 16, 2017 11:36am
 Vogels Anderson, 19, and Ryan Hamilton, 20, were found shot to death in a car Monday in Abuurn Gresham.
Vogels Anderson, 19, and Ryan Hamilton, 20, were found shot to death in a car Monday in Abuurn Gresham.
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CHICAGO — The families of two men slain this week are seeking help to raise money for their funerals.

Vogels Anderson, 19; Ryan Hamilton, 20; and Devontae Watson, 18, were found dead in a car Monday in Auburn Gresham. Autopsies showed the men had all been shot and killed.

A campaign on GoFundMe raised more than $5,900 in just one day to help pay for Anderson's funeral. A similar campaign for Hamilton has raised a little more than $2,000.

Anderson had three brothers and a sister, his mother wrote on GoFundMe. She said he was studying engineering at Daley College. City Colleges of Chicago confirmed Anderson was enrolled at the school in fall 2016.

Anderson was "filled with life and ambition," his mother wrote. "I never imagined burying my oldest child."

Hamilton loved fashion and his car, the organizer of the GoFundMe for his family wrote, and he "wanted to figure out his purpose in life and take care of his mother."

Dozens of people posted messages about the slain men on social media, saying they wanted them to "come back."

"My worst nightmare," one woman wrote of Hamilton's death. "I'm not OK. I'm not [going to] be OK for a long time. I just miss you so much. I was hoping and praying it wasn't you. I just don't understand why."

Photos and videos showed mourners gathering for a vigil near where the men were found. Attendees lit candles, put up memorial posters and released balloons in honor of Anderson, Hamilton and Watson.