Friends gathered in separate vigils Sunday for two women described as loving mothers.
First, friends of Leah Yeager met Sunday afternoon at Chesterwood Park in Dundalk to pray for the local woman. Yeager, 45, had been missing since last Monday.
Organizers of the vigil had hoped to call attention to the search for Yeager. But about a half hour after the vigil, her body was found near Brentwood and Crafton avenues.
Later Sunday, relatives and friends of Tonja Chadwick assembled at Barclay and E. 29th streets in the Harwood neighborhood of Baltimore, released dozens of purple and white balloons and sang "Glory, Hallelujah."
The body of Chadwick was found Thursday in a Southwest Baltimore Park. She was 20. Police are searching for her boyfriend, Marco Jamal Holmes, 22, as a person of interest in the case.
Erna Austin, Chadwick’s aunt, said she was a "very sweet" woman who cared for her 4-year-old son. She enjoyed spending time with her many brothers and sisters, Austin said.
About 50 friends and family gather at Chesterwood Park for a prayer vigil for the safe return of Leah Yeager, of Dundalk.
About 50 friends and family gather at Chesterwood Park for a prayer vigil for the safe return of Leah Yeager, of Dundalk.
"She loved her child. She was just a very caring person, giving and caring," Austin said. "It’s just sad that she had to go that way."
Relatives have said Chadwick was an aspiring nurse who enjoyed her job as a geriatric nursing assistant. She was last seen Saturday, when she left her aunt’s house in Belair-Edison in Northeast Baltimore.
Her body was found Thursday night under debris near a creek in a wooded area known as Daisy Field. Police said the body showed signs of trauma.
Police have not said how Chadwick was killed. Police had once before responded to a call about an argument between Holmes and Chadwick.
After two days of searching, Baltimore police said Friday that they had found the body of 20-year-old Tonja Deshaun Chadwick in a Southwest Baltimore park. They said they were looking for her boyfriend as a “person of interest” in her killing.
“This is officially a murder investigation,” said T.J….
After two days of searching, Baltimore police said Friday that they had found the body of 20-year-old Tonja Deshaun Chadwick in a Southwest Baltimore park. They said they were looking for her boyfriend as a “person of interest” in her killing.
“This is officially a murder investigation,” said T.J….
Earlier Sunday, local pastors and others gathered at Daisy Field to speak out against domestic violence.
Pam Curtis-Massey, the community activist who organized the event, said she wanted to use the vigil to draw attention to the violence some women may be facing at home.
"We have to stop ignoring that gut feeling, those red flags, and speak up for one another," Curtis-Massey said. "You don’t know what [a woman] is facing when she goes home."
The body of Yeager was found around 1 p.m. near a fence in the area of Brentwood and Crafton avenues.
Ellie Vawter, a relative of Yeager’s through marriage and organizer of the vigil, said Yeager was an outgoing stay-at-home mom.
"She loved her kids and loved her family," Vawter said. "She had a very tender heart and cared about people," Vawter said.
Yeager’s husband, Paul, died in 2012. She her children are age 27 and 18, Vawter said.
"They knew something was wrong since she was missing since Monday," Vawter said. "We’re anxious to get more answers to exactly what’s happening."
Homicide detectives are investigating, police said. They have not determined a cause of death.
An autopsy will be performed, police said.
Baltimore Sun reporter Colin Campbell contributed to this article.
cwells@baltsun.com
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