Lora Roberts and Twila Tanner went to a Pennsylvania home hoping to protect someone they loved. Neither woman made it out alive.
The two friends were among nine people killed in a devastating shooting in Erie on October 9. Now, heartbreaking details have emerged about the courageous act that brought them to the scene of the massacre.
Roberts, 37, was a devoted mother of five who had been engaged to her fiancé for 14 years. Tanner, 51, was a mother and grandmother whose loved ones are now struggling to come to terms with her sudden death.
But their grieving families have revealed a chilling connection between the women and the household at the center of the tragedy — one that sheds new light on why the friends were there in the first place.
Mother of Five Among Victims of Erie Massacre
The New York Post identified Roberts and Tanner as friends, citing online fundraisers established in the wake of their deaths.
Roberts’ GoFundMe campaign paints a heartbreaking picture of a loving mother, daughter, fiancée, family member, and friend whose life was tragically cut short. The 37-year-old left behind five children and her fiancé, Jeremy, to whom she had been engaged for 14 years.
The fundraiser had collected $11,166 toward its $15,000 goal when the supplied figures were gathered. The donations will help cover funeral expenses, support her five children, and ease the financial burden left by the loss of her income.
But Roberts’ compassion extended far beyond her own family. According to a Facebook post honoring her life, she previously served on the Board of Directors for Community of Caring, an Erie nonprofit that provides food and shelter to people experiencing homelessness.
Heartbroken Friends Remember a ‘Beautiful Soul’
As news of Roberts’ death spread, those who knew her began sharing emotional tributes to the woman they had lost.