Young Chicago mother of 4 shot, killed after school pickup

Young Chicago mother of 4 killed after school pickup

A family is mourning the loss of a young mother after a deadly shooting during what should have been a routine school pickup last week.

CHICAGO - A family is mourning the loss of a young mother after a deadly shooting during what should have been a routine school pickup last week.

Family members said on May 5, Krystal Cruz, 26, was picking up her 16-year-old brother and one of his friends from Peace and Education Coalition High School in the Back of the Yards neighborhood when gunfire erupted.

Cruz’s grandmother, Stella Hernandez, told Fox Chicago that a motorcycle pulled up alongside the vehicle before two people opened fire.

Cruz’s brother and his friend were both shot and hospitalized but are expected to survive, according to the family. Cruz did not survive.

What they're saying:

Hernandez described Cruz as a happy, caring person who dedicated her life to raising her four daughters. The girls range in age from 6 to 10 years old.

"Crystal was a happy person. She was always helping anybody and everybody," Hernandez said.

The family says the children are still struggling to understand what happened to their mother. 

"We told them that their mom’s in heaven and she’s gonna watch over them," Hernandez said. "But they just look at us like they don’t understand. The six year old, she said that 'Grandma, when is Mommy getting up? She's sleeping.' And it breaks our heart. You know, and then, you know, the other girls are so happy, you know, they are making, they're making decorations for Mother's Day and they're so happy to give to them to give it to their to their mom and we don't know what to tell them. You know, so we're going through it hard, imagine when they really realize that their mind is not going to come back."

What's next:

The family says memorial services for Cruz are scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.